The Adventure of Link
by Liquid
Summary: Five years after my Legend of Zelda novelization, the hero Link embarks on a quest to break the curse on the original Princess Zelda, who has slumbered for centuries. Meanwhile, the remnants of Ganondorf's hordes have begun their own quest, seeking to both steal the throne of Hyrule, and bring back their lost leader.
1. Chapter 1 Time Passes

_Long, long ago, in the mystical Kingdom of Hyrule, the magic of the Triforce ensured peace throughout the land. The Triforce of Wisdom, a source of knowledge and temperance, was guarded by the Royal Family, passed down through generations, and used only for the betterment of the Kingdom. The Triforce of Power, however, was discovered by a dark-hearted sorcerer named Ganondorf. A bottomless well of strength and ambition, this artifact motivated him to concoct a daring plan to seize the throne for himself… a plan that involved kidnapping the King's daughter, Princess Zelda._

 _Realizing the true intentions of the sorcerer who claimed to be her father's friend, the Princess shattered the Triforce of Wisdom into pieces that were hidden throughout the Southern Outskirts of the Kingdom, preventing Ganondorf from claiming the second Triforce, even though he was successful in capturing her. Enraged by Zelda's stubbornness, the sorcerer imprisoned her in his fortress, where he chained her to his throne and tortured her for the Triforce's location, while also preparing his hordes for an attack on the Kingdom._

 _During the capture of the Princess, her servant, Impa, managed to escape, and through her efforts a group of unlikely heroes were to become united in their quest. Prince Façade of Arcadia, Agahnim the Wizard, Link of the Eastern Forest, and Lady Miranda aka Blind the Master Thief combined their talents in order to find the Triforce pieces before Ganondorf's hordes. The search was successful; the four heroes uniting the pieces to restore the Triforce of Wisdom, along with Link's discovery of the fabled Master Sword, gave them everything they needed in order to face Ganondorf._

 _The battle was costly, with none emerging from the chaos unscathed, but in the end the sorcerer was defeated, retreating into a strange portal while his fortress collapsed. As for the heroes, they had reclaimed both the Triforce of Power and Princess Zelda, and once the King heard the tale of their deeds, each was given a great reward. Prince Façade and Princess Zelda were married, leaving them as the King and Queen of Hyrule when her father retired. Agahnim was made the Lord Governor of the Southern Outskirts, and Miranda was pardoned for all of her crimes as Blind the Thief… and shortly thereafter the two of them were married as well._

 _As for Link, the hero who had defeated Ganondorf, he was given the Triforce of Power, and named the Lord Sheriff of all Hyrule. With authority to dispense justice in all corners of the Kingdom, and the silver sword of Prince Façade's family serving as his badge of office, Hyrule came to know an era of peace and tranquility, but this was not the end of the heroes' story. In fact, Lord Sheriff Link's greatest adventure was still to come, and once again the fate of Hyrule was going to be in his hands._

 **The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter One: Time Passes**

 _Five years later…_

The sun was beginning to set, still high enough for the last bit of blue to remain in the sky above Hyrule's Capital Province, while a lone rider moved down the well-trodden road. A warm summer wind was blowing, making the grasslands on both sides move like a body of green water as the rider's horse galloped along at a fast pace. That rider was Link, Lord Sheriff of Hyrule, clad in the usual green tunic and phrygian hat that he had become famous for, and currently on his way to settle an important matter.

A thief named _Daira_ had entered the nearby small village of Ruto, and his goal must have been to simply cause trouble, because he injured a few guards, before going after the town's most prized possession. Aside from what it meant to the people of Ruto, the trophy that he had stolen from their Mayor's home was not particularly valuable… what was valuable, however, were the lives of the three townspeople that Daira had killed both during the robbery and the escape that followed.

Leaving the main road that would have led to Ruto if he had followed it, Link's horse ventured northward into the grasslands for a short distance until the green landscape began to thin out, slowly being replaced with whitish colored sand. Some of the guards had tracked the thief after he left town, following his trail to a cave on the beach, but with the level of violence Daira had displayed, as well as his previous record, they were hesitant to pursue him any further without assistance.

It didn't take very long to reach the cave in question; a small-mouthed structure that had formed in the rocks that stuck out above the sand, and as the sunlight became a darker orange, the two guards that were holding position outside the cave's entrance ignited their torches. Slowing the horse down to a trot as he approached, and then stopping completely so that he could dismount, the Lord Sheriff stretched with a yawn, before stroking the beard stubble on his face.

Gone was the fresh-faced boy who had faced down Ganondorf, replaced by a taller young man with hardened eyes, and even though Link had been forced to return the Master Sword, the silver one on his belt was what he had become known for. The sight of it caused the two guards to stand up a little straighter, even though the Lord Sheriff wasn't the type to demand such things, and now as Link looked into the cave's entrance, his only concern was stopping the criminal within from hurting anyone else.

"We tracked him this far, Lord Sheriff." The first guard explained, pointing to the one or two tracks that they had been able to preserve. "There's no other way out of the cave, but we wanted to wait until reinforcements arrived… we didn't expect to see _you_ out here, though."

"You did the right thing." Link replied without looking back. "Daira was always dangerous, especially now that he's moved up to _murder_ , but I'll handle him. You two just keep guarding the entrance in case… well, _anything_."

Not waiting for their reply, the Lord Sheriff started walking toward the cave entrance, and a few moments later he stepped into the darkness. Keeping the small shield on his forearm up a little in case the thief tried to sneak up on him, he used his other hand to slowly draw the silver sword from its sheath, calling out to Daira with an offer for him to surrender peacefully. After all King Façade had ordered him to show mercy to any wrongdoer who gave themselves up without incident, but regardless of this fact, there was no reply.

"You're making me _angry_ , Daira." The Lord Sheriff called out, stepping farther into the darkness. "I'm going to ask you _one more time_ to surrender in the name of your King, or else this cave will be your tomb."

"The Lord Sheriff, _himself_ , comes after me?" A voice replied, making him jump a little. "Well, well, I must be moving up in the world… so tell me, _Sheriff_ , just what kind of _mercy_ would there be for me if I gave you this trophy and surrendered, hmm?"

Queen Zelda was not fond of executing prisoners, but with what he had done, the best Daira could hope for would have been a life sentence at the newly renovated _Eagle Prison_ in the Southern Outskirts. For a moment there was silence, making Link hopeful that the thief would see reason, but this silence was followed by laughter that grew in intensity, before there was a sudden orange light as a nearby torch was ignited.

The light grew brighter as the wooden torch was tossed at him, but the Lord Sheriff leaned to the side, allowing it to harmlessly hit the ground and illuminate the immediate area… just as a figure leapt out of hiding. Resembling a kind of upright walking alligator, the muscular thief, Daira swung his axe, causing sparks as the blade struck Link's shield with enough force to make him stumble backwards. Without hesitation, the thief attacked again, but this time Link ducked down under it, spun around, and dragged the tip of his sword across the thief's back while he stumbled forward.

" _Ugh_ … so you _do_ have some skills." Daira groaned, turning around to face him. "I'll admit, I've always wanted to see the _great hero_ for myself… tell me… did you _really_ defeat Ganondorf, or are you just some loud-mouthed _braggart_?"

As he spoke these last words, the thief attacked again, swinging his axe with enough power to cleave a man in half. However, the Lord Sheriff simply stepped out of the way, before bringing up his silver blade so that there was a flash of blood as Daira's hand was decapitated. Howling in agony and surprise as his reptilian hand flew off into the darkness, the thief was brought to silence when Link stabbed him right through the chest.

"I don't know, Daira." He answered in response to the question as he pushed the sword in deeper. "You be the judge."

Bringing up his foot and kicking the thief so that he collapsed after being pushed off the blade, the Lord Sheriff sheathed his weapon before walking over and picking up the town's trophy, which had barely been visible in the limited glow of the torch. The artifact was undamaged, meaning that the people of Ruto were going to be pleased, and since there was no prisoner to escort, Link walked back out of the cave just as the sky was starting to turn a deep red color.

"Take this back to the village." The Lord Sheriff ordered, passing the trophy to one of the guards. "Split whatever reward they give between the two of you, and then go get some rest."

The two guards wasted no time in leaving to carry out these orders, and now Link was alone as he mounted his horse, and… finding himself just staring at the entrance to the cave where Daira fell. Killing had never been a pleasurable activity for him, not even during the fight against Ganondorf's minions, and he was always left feeling sad when it had to be done. Soon the dim glow of the thief's fallen torch went out, making him realize that the sky had become dark, but thankfully there was enough light from the moon to see where he was going.

Slapping the reins just enough to make his horse start moving, the Lord Sheriff turned around, heading back toward the grasslands, and the road that would take him to the _North Palace_. Today had been a long one, and the thought of a good night's sleep urged him to make the horse go faster. But while Link headed home, he was unaware of the shadowy figure standing in the grass a short distance away… watching him with dark eyes as he went past, and then vanishing.


	2. Chapter 2 A King's Doubt

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Two: A King's Doubt**

With the closing of another day, and all of Hyrule's business well in hand, newly crowned King Façade believed that he had everything a man could want. Eating supper at a large table inside the North Palace, sitting across from his wife, Zelda, whom he had been in love with since childhood, they casually conversed about the day's affairs, remarking about how much more efficiently things were going down in the Southern Outskirts now that Agahnim was the Lord Governor.

This opened a whole new topic for the two of them to discuss; the fact that the Queen missed her cousin, Lady Miranda, and thought that they should visit sometime soon, and then Zelda remembered that she had received a petition from the people only a short time before they sat down to eat. Apparently the subjects of Hyrule were so impressed with Link's defeat of Ganondorf, that they wanted to create a holiday in his honor. Once the rolled up petition was in his hand, Façade used his ring to stamp the royal insignia onto it without hesitation, thereby signing the parchment's contents into law.

"Guard, take this to the Court Clerk at once." The King said, holding it out to the one who was now approaching. "See that it's filed, and that word of the new holiday is spread throughout Hyrule."

The guard bowed and then ran off to complete his task, but Zelda did not seem so pleased about it. With all of the praise and rewards that the Lord Sheriff had already received, she couldn't help but question why he would need an actual holiday in his honor, especially when her husband had fought right alongside of Link, but did not receive his full share of the credit for stopping Ganondorf.

"My love, I am the _King of Hyrule_ , and known as such." Façade explained, hoping to remove the skeptical look from his wife's face. "The people will always bow and show us respect, but they need heroes as well. Link is the closest thing I have to a brother, and when our people see that a man of such common origins has been elevated by his own merit, it will inspire them to follow his example."

"I understand your way of thinking, Façade." The Queen replied, using her napkin to dab the corner of her mouth after a bite. "Link and the others are heroes, _that_ is undeniable, but the people need to look to their _King_ for inspiration and leadership as well."

The King understood what she was trying to say, and he had heard the rumors that some of the people believed that Link should have become ruler instead of him, since he had played the largest part in both rescuing Zelda _and_ defeating Ganondorf, but that way of thinking had been quickly silenced. During the coronation, when he and Zelda had been crowned, Link, Agahnim, and Lady Miranda had all knelt down and sworn fealty to them. Now, if a King was worthy of a great hero like Link's loyalty, then who else could question it?

Once this conversation was over, a kind of awkward silence fell over the room, and it lasted until their meal was over. By this time it was getting late, so the two of them decided to get an early night, which raised Façade's spirits, since he now got to fall asleep in a gigantic, extremely comfortable bed, with his arms around Zelda. It had taken a long time for her to be able to even fall asleep without a powder after her ordeal as Ganondorf's prisoner, but even after being able to do so, sometimes the nightmares still plagued her.

Half asleep, the King was dimly aware of his wife tossing and turning, moving around as if struggling with some unseen enemy. He was startled awake, though, when the Queen let out a frightened shriek. Zelda's eyes were open, and she continued to scream while flailing around against the blanket, and during these _waking nightmares_ it was surprisingly difficult to restrain her so that she couldn't inadvertently harm herself. Eventually she stopped; blinking and looking around as if she didn't know where she was.

"I was _there_!" She exclaimed, sobbing as she buried her face into his shoulder. "Spectacle Rock… I was _there_ again! Ganondorf had me, and you couldn't find me! I was _there_ , Façade, I was _there_!"

Zelda had more to say, but her speech had devolved into a series of tear-filled, terrified ramblings, and all Façade could do was hold her. He reassured his wife that she was safe, and that Ganondorf was gone, but on nights like this, the only thing that could calm her down was a dose of the sleeping powder that had been left on the end table. As much as he wanted to continue holding her after the powder had taken effect, Façade knew that the best thing for her was to be left to sleep undisturbed, so he got out of bed, carefully tucked her in, and decided to go for a walk.

Stepping out of his chambers in only his long night-shirt and cap, the King was able to see thanks to the constantly lit torches that were mounted on the stone walls of the corridor. Beyond the windows and palace walls, however, was Hyrule, and the sight of the moonlit forests and plains made him long for the days when he was but an adventuring Prince of Arcadia, off to save his beloved from…

Suddenly Façade's thoughts were interrupted as something flew in through the window, letting him feel the rush of air on his face as an arrow just missed him, sticking itself into the wall instead. Bringing his hand up to his face out of reflex, the King was relieved to find that he hadn't been cut by the attack, but he was frustrated that he saw no one outside after looking out the window again. The only thing he could do now was to sound the alarm, but Façade stopped when he looked back at the arrow, and saw that there was a rolled up parchment attached to it.

This seemed like an odd way to send a message to the King of Hyrule, but it was a message nonetheless, so he removed the rolled up parchment, opened it up, and found that it was more like a full sized letter than a simple message. There was not enough light where he was standing for him to read what it said, so Façade walked back down the corridor so that he hold it up by one of the torches. He had plenty of light now, and after turning so that everything was clear, he found that it said:

 _To his Fraudulent Majesty, King Façade of Hyrule;_

 _I hope that you find this letter and its arrow buried deep into the heart of one of your most trusted servants, as it would spare them from having to continue serving a spineless, false King like you for a day longer. All of Hyrule knows the truth about what happened during the rescue of your Queen five years ago; you did almost nothing while Link defeated both Darknut the Unyielding and Ganondorf._

 _You do not deserve to be the King of Hyrule, and you only yet live because Darknut was struck by a lucky blow after his strength was drained from fighting Link. I would hold no grudge if it were he that assumed the throne, but you… you are a disgrace to both this Kingdom and your homeland of Arcadia, and to that end I challenge you to a duel to the death, where your honor and skill will be tested for all to see._

 _Come to King's Cross, and there you and I will face each other alone, on even ground. I shall wait for you as long as it takes for you to muster up your courage, but the longer I have to wait, the more I shall spread word of your cowardice. Make no mistake, Façade, my family will be avenged, and after you die by my hand, maybe my brother, Darknut, will finally be able to rest in peace._

 _Impatiently yours;_

 _Rebonack the Unyielding_

No matter what he thought of the name Rebonack, Façade found himself growing angry at the written words, mostly because they were needless slander about his encounters with Darknut. The King clearly remembered his first encounter with the armored knight at Manji Estate, and although the fight had been grueling, Façade had emerged the winner after dealing what he thought was a mortal blow. The armored knight reappeared during their assault on Spectacle Rock, and he was shortly killed thereafter, but it was through the combined efforts of himself _and_ Link.

For the longest time, Façade just stared at the letter, feeling himself growing angrier with each passing second. How _dare_ this person disrespect their King in such a way? How dare they act like their traitorous brother was even worth avenging in the first place? Darknut had been Ganondorf's partner, and he had met a gruesome death, as was the preferable fate of all traitors. Still, a challenge was a challenge, but… how would the people of Hyrule view his acceptance of such terms?

Situations like these were one of the most frustrating parts of being King, and this one was particularly bad, given that he could be viewed as a coward if he declined. Rebonack's claims could also be seen as legitimate if he accepted, so he honestly didn't know what he should do. Well, when the King was uncertain, the best thing for him to do was to call for an advisor, so Façade rushed back to his chambers, sat down at the desk, and in the candlelight he began to write his own letter on parchment.

 _To Lord Governor Agahnim of the Southern Outskirts Province;_

 _My dearest friend, I write to you in urgency, as I am in need of your wise and impartial council in a delicate matter. While I wish to say nothing else in this letter, I ask that you and Lady Miranda come immediately to the North Palace so that she can be of comfort to my dear Zelda, and so that you and I may discuss this matter in private._

 _Sincerely;_

 _King Façade of Hyrule_

Once finished with the letter, he sealed it, and then called for a guard just as he had done with the petition, giving him orders to see it to Snake Palace in the Southern Outskirts at once. The guard bowed before leaving, and now Façade felt a little better… yes, now he would simply forget about the matter until Agahnim arrived, and after blowing out the candle, the King returned to more important matters… like making sure that Zelda was taken care of.


	3. Chapter 3 Link's Dream

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Three: Link's Dream**

Sleep came easy for the Lord Sheriff, regardless of him having to take Daira's life, and the fact that it was extremely late by the time he reached the North Palace probably had something to do with that. Yawning as he made his way up to his chambers, Link went right to bed, snoring almost before his head hit the pillow. Drifting off peacefully into the night, he suddenly became aware of a light being shined on his eyes, opening them to see that it was coming from the sun high up in the clear, blue sky.

He could hear seagulls, and there was a sloshing sound as the blanket moved around by his feet… no, not blankets… _water_. Sitting up and looking around, the Lord Sheriff realized that he was no longer in his chambers, but lying on the white sand of a warm, tropical beach. In front of him the ocean stretched out for as far as the eye could see, and behind him, beyond the beach was a thick forest. Beyond that was a mountain, and at the top, surrounded by puffy white rings of clouds, was something odd... like a giant painted rock or…

"Hello, Link." A woman's voice said, interrupting his thoughts. "I know the beach is lovely, but are you _really_ going to just sit there all day?"

Turning his head, he saw that a beautiful woman with long, blonde hair was standing next to him; her dress blowing in the soft wind, and offering a hand to help him get up. Link accepted, and once he was standing, while brushing the sand from his clothes, he couldn't help but think that he had seen her somewhere before. Then it hit him, just as the wind blew her hair across her face a certain way, he realized who it was that he was talking to.

"Queen Zelda?!" He asked with surprise. "I don't understand… where are we? How did we get here? And… how did your hair turn blonde?"

"Oh, no, silly… I'm not Zelda." The blonde woman explained. "Well, I am… just not the one that _you_ know. I am indeed _a_ Princess Zelda, and this beautiful place is _Koholint Island_. Will you walk with me a while?"

Her words were confusing, but Link couldn't see anything wrong with going for a walk with her, so he took her arm, and the two of them started leaving footprints in the sand as they moved along the beach. Off in the distance he could see people fishing, and there was smoke coming from within the forest, meaning that there was probably a village nearby, but the only thing that _this_ Zelda spoke of was her wish to return to Hyrule, as if she had been gone for a long time.

"I've been on this island for such a long time, Link." She explained, pushing her hair behind her ear with her free hand. "And soon I will have a chance to see my home again, but I need your help to make my dream come true. I don't have much time to talk, but I have something that will help you to understand."

Without waiting for his reply, the Princess moved her arm so that she could grab his hand with both of hers, and now there was a burning sensation on the back of his hand. Try as he might, the Lord Sheriff was unable to pull away from her, and the burning became so intense that he opened his eyes, sitting up to find that both the island and the blonde Zelda were gone. There was orange light coming in through the window, meaning that the sun was just coming up, and it gave him enough light to see that he was back in his chambers up in the southern tower of the palace.

The sky and island had been replaced with stone walls, and the beach with his warm, comfortable bed. A dream? Of course, the whole encounter _had_ to have been a dream, since where else would he have been able to find a tropical paradise with the Queen's twin sister, or whoever she had been? Yes, it had been a dream, and while the beautiful woman was gone, she too had been replaced… by the one that he shared his chambers with.

" _Awake at last, are we_?" A deep voice asked while a red light flickered across the walls. " _Ready for another day of wasting your energy on common criminals? You have so much potential, Link, yet instead of claiming this land for yourself, you are content to be nothing more than a glorified servant_."

Looking to the left, over to the shimmering red pyramid that floated mere inches above the pedestal it had been placed on, the Lord Sheriff already knew that the voice belonged to the _Triforce of Power_. This ancient artifact had been his prize after defeating Ganondorf at Spectacle Rock, but it was always urging him to be more than he was comfortable with. These were probably the same words that once urged the sorcerer to make a grab for the throne, but honestly, Link was just not interested.

" _Your friend Agahnim fought as you did, and where is he now_?" The red Triforce continued. " _He is the Lord of Snake Palace, rules over an entire Province, and married the woman of his dreams. Yet you choose to sit here, playing serving-boy to the fool who stole what was rightfully yours_."

This was not the first time that the shimmering pyramid had tried to motivate him through jealousy or anger, but just like all the other times, it was not going to work. Agahnim was a good fit to be Governor of the Southern Outskirts, and he and Lady Miranda were _made_ for each other, while Link didn't want the title _or_ the girl. Now, as for Façade… while the Lord Sheriff admitted to not liking him very much in the beginning, they had forged a strong friendship during the quest to rescue Zelda.

Was Zelda beautiful? Yes, but she loved Façade, and their marriage left him as the rightful King of Hyrule after old Harkinian retired. Queen Zelda's father then traveled to Arcadia to be with Façade's mother, their Queen, which had been awkward for them… but as far as Link was concerned, Façade was the King, and that was that. He was perfectly happy to both be respected and have authority over any wrongdoing throughout the Kingdom, and besides… the North Palace was a lot better than the _cave_ he used to live in.

" _Link, I only want you to reach your potential_." The red Triforce said. " _You defeated Ganondorf, you can do anything you set your mind to, and… and what is that on your hand_?"

He could still dimly feel the burning sensation on the back of his hand from the dream, and until the shimmering pyramid had mentioned it, the Lord Sheriff had assumed that he had simply slept on it wrong or somehow pinched his skin. However, when Link brought up his hand to take another look, it was not a welt or a burn that he saw, but the design of three triangles locked together, sort of like the emblem of Hyrule's royal family. Honestly, he wasn't sure how to explain it to the Triforce, but apparently words weren't necessary in this case.

" _Pick me up_." The red pyramid ordered. " _I must speak to my sister at once_."

The sudden tone of seriousness and urgency in the Triforce's voice prompted the Lord Sheriff to get dressed in a hurry, putting on his clothes, sheathing his sword, and then grabbing the shimmering pyramid as he walked out the door. Down the winding stairs of the tower while the light coming in through the windows gradually got brighter with the coming of a new day, the Triforce of Power urged him to move quickly, as well as warning to servants who were cleaning the next corridor to _make way_ as soon as they came through the door.

Through the corridor, and down the next flight of stairs, passing large portraits of Queen Zelda's ancestors, Link felt bad about how startled the servants looked as they jumped out of the way, one of them having to bend sideways to catch an expensive vase before it fell on the floor. The Lord Sheriff called back a few apologies, but didn't stop until they reached the main hall, where old armor suits and elaborate tapestries were on display.

"Oh, good morning, Link." King Façade said with a yawn and stretch as he stepped into view. "How did everything go with Ruto's tro…

" _Get out of my way, fool_." The Triforce of Power interrupted. " _We must get to the vault at once_."

Link apologized for that the red pyramid was saying, before answering that the hunt for Daira had ended with the thief's death, and then telling the King about both his dream and the mark on his hand, which now looked more like a tattoo. Unfortunately, Façade was unable to enter the north wing of the palace, since it was only accessible to blood members of the royal family, and apparently the Queen hadn't gotten much sleep. The Triforce was irritated with this, but neither of them were willing to disturb Zelda, so it was decided that they would wait... but then Impa, the Queen's elderly servant arrived.

"Oh, my goodness!" She exclaimed after immediately noticing the tattoo on his hand. "Oh, my goodness, you've been _marked_! The Queen will want to see this at once!"

" _Then wake her up, woman_." The Triforce replied with an irritated tone. " _This is far more important than Zelda's beauty-rest_."

The old woman leaned heavily on her walking stick as she headed off to wake the Queen, and she had been slowing down a bit more each year, but that didn't stop Impa from performing her task. Vanishing through one of the side passages, several minutes passed before the old woman returned, this time with the brown-haired Zelda walking quickly behind her. The Queen was in her robe, with her hair looking as if it had been hastily put up, and she ignored Link and Façade's greetings, instead marching right up to the Lord Sheriff and grabbing his hand.

"Is this it, Impa?" She asked, roughly pulling his arm so that the old woman could see. "Is this the mark that you saw when my father was a boy?"

"Yes, Your Highness, it has to be." Impa answered, painfully twisting Link's hand so that she could get a better look. "Oh, that poor guard… he never had a chance."

"What guard?" The Lord Sheriff asked. "What are you talking about, Impa?"

For now it seemed that his questions were to be left unanswered, instead hearing the Queen announce that they needed to enter the north wing at once. The Triforce of Power was pleased by this, but Link was left confused by everything that had happened, now following the others in a stupor. He hoped that it would all be explained to him soon, as they headed across the main hall… toward the north wing.


	4. Chapter 4 The Legend of Zelda

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Four: The Legend of Zelda**

Impa had not been exaggerating; the heavy door into the north wing did not open until Queen Zelda placed her hand upon it, and now they entered an ancient looking place. Built and decorated exactly like the rest of the North Palace, the floor and furnishing were coated with heavy dust that caused them to leave footprints as they moved down the corridor. The wall-mounted torches looked empty and unusable, but there was plenty of sunlight coming in through the stained-glass windows, allowing the small group to see when they reached a large, open chamber.

At the center of this chamber, illuminated by a large, domed skylight, was a huge kind of alter that resembled a stacked, three-level pyramid. A carved staircase provided access to each level, and at the very top was a small bed where a woman with blonde hair was laid out. She was not dead, however, instead appearing to be asleep while her chest moved slightly up and down with gentle breaths. Unlike the rest of this place, neither she nor the bed was covered in dust, and Link couldn't help gasping once he got a good look at her face.

"That's her!" He exclaimed, pointing at the sleeping woman. "The other Zelda that I saw in my dream!"

"Link, this is Princess Zelda… my ancestor." The Queen explained. "For as long as anyone can remember, she has been sleeping in this very spot, and my father said that it was because of a curse. Apparently, my great-great-grandfather tried to use both Triforces to wake her up, just before the Triforce of Power was hidden away… but nothing worked."

" _Bring me the Triforce of Wisdom_." The red pyramid ordered. " _The old woman remembers more of the story than you do, anyhow_."

It was true that Impa knew more about the old legends of Hyrule than the Queen did, so while Zelda and Façade returned to the altar's second level to open the Triforce of Wisdom's hiding place, the old woman began to recount what had been told to her about the sleeping Zelda… the _original_ Zelda. She had indeed been cursed by powerful magic that put her to sleep, but this had been done _hundreds_ of years in the past.

"The very first King of Hyrule once controlled both Triforces." Impa explained. "He used them to unite the land and bring peace to the people, but in his heart he knew that no one person should command such power. He split them apart, and when he died, his son inherited one of them, while his daughter, Zelda, received the second."

Apparently the Prince was a greedy man, and he along with a powerful magician who was his ally, attempted to force the Princess into handing over her Triforce. Zelda knew that this was exactly why their father had separated them, so she refused, only to be cursed with eternal sleep by the magician. Stricken with grief over what he had allowed to happen, and his mind no longer clouded by greed, the Prince banished the magician, and placed the Princess there on the altar in the hopes that she would one day awaken.

"The Prince had learned his lesson, and went on to be a great King." The old woman continued. "And he ordered that from now on every daughter of the royal family would be given the name Zelda, so that no one would ever forget what happened to his sister."

" _And we were there to witness this_." The Triforce of Wisdom spoke in a soft, female voice. " _Your rendition leaves out, however, that there were once not only two Triforce parts, but three_."

The shimmering green pyramid added to Impa's tale that while the first King of Hyrule did break apart the Triforce and give Power and Wisdom to his children, he had hidden away the yellow _Triforce of Courage_. It was this third piece that the Prince so desperately sought, and without the location that the King had only disclosed to his daughter, it had remained lost. A last part of the curse, however, said that when someone with a genuinely good character, one who had conquered a great evil and not been corrupted by his own strength, they would be marked as the one who would reunite the Triforce as a whole, and break the curse on Zelda.

It seemed that the mark on the Lord Sheriff's hand was the indicator of the one chosen for this undertaking, and as great of an honor as something like this was, everyone was being really vague as to what this chosen person was _actually_ supposed to do. No one in the room, not even the two Triforces knew where the missing one was, nor did any of them know what kind of conditions had to be met in order to reach it. So Link's next question was that if he really was some kind of chosen hero, then what was he supposed to do?

"I believe that _I_ can answer that?" Another woman's voice said, making all of them stop what they were doing. "The Triforce of Courage is hidden inside the _Great Palace_ in the _Valley of Death_ , but first you'll have to prove yourself worthy."

All turning toward the sound of this new voice, what they saw was a shadowy figure whose features were covered by a dark gray hood and cape. When the hood was removed, however, Link couldn't help but gasp when he saw the long black hair and beautiful face of the woman underneath. Still, everyone knew that this was an area of the palace that was forbidden to all but those with permission from the royal family, so while most of the group was surprised to see her there, Impa became angry.

"You!?" The old woman yelled, leaning on her walking stick as she moved down the stairs toward the stranger. "You! It _is_ you! You killed my son!"

Moving faster than even the Queen had ever seen her go, Impa pulled her walking stick apart, revealing the hidden blade within as she reached the bottom of the alter. She slashed at the stranger, who simply avoided it by stepping backwards, but the old woman continued to stab at her, and repeating the accusations of this woman having killed her son. With as old as Impa was, it was unlikely that the strange would have even been _born_ when her son was alive, but that didn't stop her from trying once again to…

" _Hada_." The stranger said calmly, raising up her arm.

She brought the back of her hand across the old woman's face just as white energy was surrounding it, and the result was Impa being literally thrown across the room. She flew into some old curtains when she hit the wall on the other side of the chamber, knocking them off their hanger, so that they completely covered her body after she crashed to the floor. In reaction to this, Link drew his silver sword, now rushing down toward the stranger, and even though Façade wasn't armed, he ran down as well.

" _Hielo_." The dark haired woman said, pointing her finger.

A swirl of blueish energy formed at the tip of her finger, before blasting outward into a cone of frozen energy… not aimed at the two men, but at the floor. The elaborate tiles became coated with ice and frost, spreading out across a large area just as Link and Façade reached the floor, causing both of them to slip and lose their footing. The sword flew from his grasp as the Lord Sheriff fell onto his back, sliding to a stop at the stranger's feet just as she picked up his fallen sword.

"Do _not_ move." She ordered, touching the tip of the blade to his throat. "Now, should I just run you through… or are you ready to talk sensibly?"

From where he was lying, it seemed that Link had no choice but to cooperate, but while he and the King had been getting defeated by this woman's magic, Queen Zelda had rushed over to where her elderly servant had fallen. Calling her name as she searched through the heavy curtains, Zelda was shocked when she didn't find the old woman, but instead a tiny, winged fairy lying at the bottom. Carefully scooping up the fairy in her hands, she started to wake up, blinking several times and then opening her eyes… before letting out a startled scream.

"Oh no, Queen Zelda!" The tiny fairy exclaimed. "That witch! That harpy! She's turned you into a _giant_!"

The stranger chuckled a bit, watching as the little fairy discovered that it was _she_ who had been changed, and not Zelda. The formerly old woman was in shock at first, but then she realized how young her hands looked… as well as the rest of her. The wings were a little hard to get used to, as was the fact that was now about the size of the Queen's hand, but other than having been transformed into a fairy, Impa was pretty much unharmed.

"See, there is no need to be so hostile." The stranger continued, moving the blade from Link's neck. "Now, as I was saying, like everyone else who has been chosen over the years, you are going to have to prove yourself worthy. There are a series of challenges that you must face, and only by conquering all of them will you be able to pass through the barrier over the Great Palace."

"Wait a second, what do you mean, like _everyone else chosen_?" The Lord Sheriff asked, taking her hand to help him up when she offered it. "And how would you know so much about the curse in the first place?"

"I'll tell you how she knows!" Impa growled angrily, trying to keep her footing while standing on Zelda's hand. "Because she's a monster! She's nothing but a foul witch, and she lured my son to his death!"

And there was the last part of the legend of Zelda and her curse… Ganondorf had not been the first great evil to befall Hyrule, and as Link had done, others had saved the Kingdom as well. The most recent was a guard who had single-handedly saved a very young Prince Harkinian, and defeated the warlord who wanted to seize the throne. The young guard was also Impa's son, and his heroism left him marked in the same way that the Lord Sheriff had been.

He had accepted the quest, and rushed off to meet the challenges and prove his worth, but alas, the challenges were too great, and he was killed. There had been others before him as well, several in fact, and each had come up wanting, leaving the Triforce of Courage hidden, and Princess Zelda locked in her eternal slumber until another hero proved that he was worthy enough to try.

"Your son _chose_ to take the quest." The dark haired woman replied coldly. "Just as this one has the choice _now_ … my name is Sing… and I'm the magician who put the curse on her in the first place."


	5. Chapter 5 Sing the Magician

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Five: Sing the Magician**

"How can _you_ be the magician who created the curse?" Link asked in honest confusion. "Princess Zelda was put to sleep hundreds of years ago."

"Curses are funny that way, I suppose." Sing explained as she gave him back his sword. "I'm sure you heard a bunch of stories about the _poor victims_ of being cursed, but in _real life_ , an actual curse demands just as much from the caster as from the afflicted. So, I say to you again… do you accept the chance to break the curse, or does my old friend, Zelda, get to sleep for a few hundred more years?"

" _Do it, Link_." The Triforce of Power urged from atop the altar where it had been set. "You defeated Ganondorf, so go ahead and show this witch the power that the others did not possess."

" _Tread carefully, Link_." The Triforce of Wisdom added. "You are a great warrior, but so were the others, so do not underestimate the dangers of this quest."

Everyone seemed to have accepted the situation for what it was, as did they all have their own opinions about what the Lord Sheriff should do about it, well, all except King Façade, who was oddly silent for some reason. The Queen, on the other hand, was _very_ outspoken about what was happening; going on about how this was the chance for her ancestor to awaken, and for Hyrule to know a new era of peace under the unified Triforces. Zelda's faith in his abilities was understandable, since he had defeated Ganondorf… but that battle had honestly been a team effort, and this new quest would have to be undertaken alone.

"If it makes you feel any better." The dark haired woman continued. "You should know that I am not allowed to interfere with the challenges in any way, nor may I physically hinder you from attempting them."

Honestly, that was a relief, since Sing wielded the same kind of magic that Agahnim and Ganondorf used, if not more. If she was telling the truth, then there was no challenge in the land that could have been more difficult that what he had faced while trying to rescue Zelda five years ago, especially since Ganondorf had been supported by the Triforce of Power, an artifact that _he_ currently held. So Link accepted the magician's terms, finding himself hesitate once again after being surprised by Sing's smile… her beautiful, _genuine_ smile.

"Then there is no time to lose." She said, turning away and motioning for him to follow. "I will guide you to the first challenge, and there we shall see what you are made of."

"Good luck, Link." Queen Zelda said, putting a hand on his shoulder. "If anyone can put an end to this curse, it's you."

Façade also wished him luck, as did the now fairy Impa, who also added a warning about not trusting Sing. The Lord Sheriff assured them that he would not fail, and as confident as he appeared, Link now wished more than anything that his old friend, Agahnim, could have joined him. To say that he wasn't nervous about going off alone with the magician would have been a lie; Sing was beautiful and powerful, and he had no way of knowing whether or not she had been telling him the truth about well… any of it.

"So, why are you going along?" Link asked after stopping to grab his shield and trusty boomerang. "Wouldn't it be easier for you to simply tell me where to go, and then wait?"

"Without me, you would never even _find_ the challenge sites." She explained as they headed toward the doors. "And besides, if you die and you're alone out there, who will be around to bring the news back?"

Although what she was saying made sense, it did not sit well with him, nor did her plural emphasis on the words _challenge sites_ … as in, more than one. Now exiting the castle, and walking toward the stables where the Lord Sheriff's horse was kept, he asked the magician just how many challenge sites there were, but she would not say. Claiming that she was not allowed because of the curse's rules, Sing explained that part of the challenge was to keep going without knowing if there were five or fifty obstacles to overcome.

"So, what happens if you break the rules?" He asked, putting the bridal and saddle on his horse. "You keep going on about how everything has to happen a certain way, but what would happen if you just, oh, I don't know… killed me?"

"That will absolutely _not_ happen." The magician replied, a sudden seriousness in her voice. "If I were to do something like that, or if you were to do the opposite, then the curse would last forever. The Triforce of Courage would remain lost behind the barrier, and your precious Zelda would remain asleep for all time."

It sounded pretty serious, and was as good of an explanation as any, but from the way she talked, it was almost as if the dark haired woman _wanted_ him to break the curse. But that made absolutely no sense if she was the one who had created it in the first place. Soon the horse was saddled, and now it was getting late enough in the morning for the sky to start turning blue as the Lord Sheriff climbed onto the saddle. He was surprised, however, when he felt Sing climb on as well, sitting behind him while locking her arms around his waist.

"Head west." She ordered, pointing toward the bridge. "Don't worry, you won't have to go far."

The North Palace sat at the center of a small island in the middle of a lake, meaning that unless someone wanted to either swim or they were able to fly, the bridge was the only way in or out. The guards lifted the heavy latch upon seeing his approach, and there was a loud _creak_ as they pushed the wooden doors open, allowing them to finally leave the palace, and start across the bridge.

Link was starting to wonder when she was going to tell him where they were going, but upon reaching the mainland, the magician let go of his waist with one arm so that something could slide down into her hand from up her sleeve. Recognizing the object immediately, the Lord Sheriff couldn't help but gasp when he realized that it was not a weapon, but a _recorder_ … the same kind of musical instrument that Ganondorf had used to travel great distances around the Southern Outskirts.

He started to protest, bringing the horse to a stop in order to take it from her, but it was too late. With one hand, Sing brought the recorder to her lips and played a series of notes. Having only traveled with such a device a single time before, Link remembered every detail of the experience, beginning with the wind picking up around them; swirling like a miniature tornado as the whole world vanished around them.

The wind was so strong that he had to shut his eyes, and no other sound beyond the moving air could be heard, but he was dimly aware of Sing still holding onto him while they spun around and around. But then it all stopped; the wind, the noise, everything fading away as quickly as it had appeared, and the dizziness along with the sudden brightness of the landscape left him so disoriented that he fell from the horse.

Expecting to fall onto either grass or the hardened road, the Lord Sheriff was surprised when it was sand… hot, shifting sand that broke his fall. Some of it got into his mouth, causing him to cough and spit it out as he got up to his hands and knees, and when he was finally able to open his eyes, there was a bright, arid landscape before him. The grasslands and lakes were gone, replaced by a place that looked like the small _Tantari Desert_ , where he had pursued Daira… but this was bigger… _a lot_ bigger.

"Where are we?" Link asked, getting to his feet. "Sing, what is this place?"

"What, the _Lord Sheriff_ doesn't know his own Kingdom?" The dark haired woman laughed from still atop the horse. "This is the great _Parappa Desert_ … when I was a little girl it was lush and green here, but no longer. Shall we?"

After brushing the sand off himself, he climbed back onto the horse, and together the two of them rode deeper into the desert. Sing reminisced about how there had once been trees and rivers flowing through Parappa, as well as a great palace that had been abandoned as soon as the water dried up. Of course, the Lord Sheriff had never been to Parappa before, and was honestly not even sure where it was on the map.

With no directions other than to keep heading north-west, it wasn't hard for him to figure out that she was taking him to the old palace, but the magician would say nothing about what the challenge was to be. Back during the fight against Ganondorf, there had been plenty of fighting, but there had also been other things in his way, such as finding hidden locations, and solving puzzles… once again making him wish that Agahnim had been able to join him, since this mysterious challenge could have been literally anything.

"Look at _that_." Sing said, pointing off into the distance. "I don't remember seeing clouds like that last time I was here."

Unlike the white, puffy ones that dotted the sky, the ones that she was pointing to were a kind of tannish, brown color, almost the same of the sand… and they were getting bigger. Not that Link was claiming to be an expert on deserts, but as the clouds got bigger and taller, it became obvious that they were not looking at ordinary clouds, but a massive _sand storm_ that spanned the horizon. A knot was forming in his stomach as the storm got closer, and although they needed to get off the horse, they also needed some kind of cover… in fact, _any_ kind would help.

However, before any could be found, the sand storm seemed to pick up speed, and suddenly the wall passed over them, spraying into his eyes, nose, and mouth. The horse snorted and stumbled sideways, while the magician hid her face behind Link's back, making it difficult for him to wipe his face with his sleeve. Just as he cleared enough of the built up sand from his eyes in order to see, a large, dark object was spotted bouncing right toward them. It was a rock… a big, rounded stone that was carried by the wind, bouncing one more time before coming right for his face.

Lifting his arm at the last second, the rock struck the Lord Sheriff's shield, and although he managed to deflect it, there was enough force behind the blow to send both him and the magician tumbling over backwards. Both crashing into the sand, the horse was heard whinnying before he lost sight of the animal, and now the storm was so powerful that it was nearly blocking out the sun… while more rocks were seen bouncing around toward them.


	6. Chapter 6 A Matter of Honor

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Six: A Matter of Honor**

Following from a safe distance as Link and Sing left the palace, and then watching as the two of them rode off toward the bridge to the mainland. Façade was still feeling conflicted. Not just about watching his friend go off with someone who they didn't know or trust, but also about having received his own challenge the previous night. The words written by the mysterious Rebonock were replaying in his mind so much that the King could almost hear them being spoken out loud, but he still didn't know what to do.

"Darling, why don't you put the Triforce of Wisdom back?" He asked, picking up the red pyramid after they had walked back to the altar. "I'll take this one back up to Link's chambers, where it'll be safe."

Queen Zelda agreed, and as soon as she started over to put the green pyramid away, Façade whisked the Triforce of Power out of the north wing as quickly as he could. True to what he said, the King went back down corridors and upstairs into the tower than the Lord Sheriff called home, but after setting the red shimmering pyramid on top of its pedestal, he didn't immediately leave… instead sitting down on a nearby chair.

"All right, look… I know that we don't like each other." He said, leaning forward in the chair. "But I need some advice, and not the kind where the one I'm asking tells me to look inside myself."

" _Link did not need my council to make up his mind_." The red pyramid replied. " _That is the difference between you… heroes do not sit around and think for days on end when they are challenged… heroes act. Your honor has been challenged, so go and show the people of Hyrule that you are indeed fit to rule them… unless you aren't_."

Façade really did not like the Triforce of Power, but after listening to its words, everything seemed so simple. Back when he had first encountered Darknut at Manji Estate, he had not sat there and pondered what would be the most politically correct solution, he drew his sword and put the evil knight in his place. That settled it, so the King left the chambers, and started back down the stairs, not stopping until he had reached the royal armory.

Link had his silver sword, but the standard blade of a knight of Hyrule would work just fine, and he still had the magical shield of his family. As for his armor, it was a dulled but flexible suit of chainmail, but when he put his family's ancient blue sapphire ring on his finger, the armor became the color of shined bluish-silver. Agahnim was still essential for the upcoming duel, and King's Cross was only a stone's throw away from the border to the Southern Outskirts, so he would simply pick him up along the way.

"You're going _where_?" Zelda asked once he had explained the situation. "To face _who_?"

"Zelda, my darling, I know that you're worried." Façade explained, now heading toward the front doors of the palace. "But this is something that I have to do. I'll take Agahnim with me, and I'll send your cousin, Miranda, to stay with you until we return."

Naturally, this was not enough to make her feel better, and like any good wife, she tried to make him see reason. _What if you get killed? What if this is all a trap? What will I tell Miranda if something happens to her husband? Why can't someone else go in your stead?_ Façade loved her for showing such concern for his wellbeing, but he simply told her that everything was going to be all right, and that this was something that he had to do in order to prove his worth to both himself _and_ the people of Hyrule.

"No." The Queen said sternly. "Façade, this is foolish, and I forbid you to go. Now, you can either put away that armor willingly, or I'll have the guards take it from you."

Again, he understood why she was acting like this, but the very notion of the guards taking any kind of action against their own King was just ridiculous… at least until Zelda called for them. At her command, they moved in front of the open door, while two others left their posts in order to surround him. Once there, she explained to the armored guards that Façade had taken leave of his senses and needed to be restrained for his own good… and now they were closing in.

"You can't be serious." The King said, backing away as they got closer. "I'm the King of Hyrule, you can't just arrest me like some common criminal. Stand down, guards… I said _stand down_ … look behind you, its _Ganondorf_!"

He hadn't really expected them to fall for such a desperate deception, but surprisingly they did. Turning around to find only an empty staircase, Façade used the moment to run past the guards at the door, heading into the courtyard and toward the stables. A Long time ago he had ordered that his faithful horse, _Perfection_ , be saddled at dawn each day in case he was ever needed, so all Façade had to do was whistle, and the beast came galloping out at full speed.

By this time Zelda had called for the alarm to be raised, causing the guards in the courtyard to all start pursuing him as he jumped onto the white horse. The gates were still open from when Link had departed, and now that the alarm bells were ringing, the guards were working to close it… but if the King hurried he might just make it before they did. Spurring the horse, and having to swing around to avoid his pursuers, Façade still couldn't believe that the guards were actually coming after him on his wife's orders.

It was nice to know that they were loyal to her no matter what, but right now it was also frustrating to have to continually dodge their attempts to grab him while he rode toward the gates. Granted, this was a lot easier to do from horseback, and after swerving Perfection around the last one, the King had a clear run for the gates. _Whack!_ There was a kind of whooshing sound as something flew through the air, and then a boomerang like Link's struck him in the shoulder as it went past.

The armor protected him from harm, but didn't keep him from tumbling sideways off the horse, where he slammed into the ground just as the boomerang circled back around into the hand of its thrower… _Zelda_. Now there was no escaping from the guards, and although Perfection had started to charge in to help him, the animal now seemed to be rethinking this strategy.

"Façade, I love you, but think about what you're trying to do." The Queen said, putting the boomerang on her belt as the guards picked him up. "Running off the face some nameless challenger is reckless and irresponsible. Hyrule needs you here, ruling the Kingdom, not running off like you and Link are still carefree lay-abouts."

" _Lay-abouts_?!" Façade exclaimed, trying, but failing, to pull free of the guards. "Zelda, right now Link is risking his life for the good of Hyrule, while I sit here doing _nothing_. It is absolutely killing me that I can't be there to help him, and now if I can't go and face this man who spits on my honor and challenges my right to rule… Zelda, what kind of a King does that make me?"

For a while everyone was silent, and then after starting to say something to him but stopping a few times, the Queen ordered the guards to let him go. They did, returning to their posts as if nothing had happened at all, and although Zelda still protested what he was doing, she understood why he wanted to. After all, if they had waited to try and rescue her five years ago, and instead relied on things like diplomacy, well… she might have _never_ been free of Ganondorf.

"Just promise me you won't meet this person until Agahnim is with you." She said, picking up his sword and handing it to him. "And if you even _start_ to suspect that something is wrong, I want you to get out of there."

"I promise, my love." Façade agreed, taking the weapon and sheathing it. "And I'll be back before you know it."

Giving her a quick kiss, and trying not to limp from the pain in his leg as he walked toward the horse, the King had to bite his lip to keep from crying out as he pulled himself up into the saddle. The soreness that he felt was sure to fade by the time he reached King's Cross, so he waved goodbye to Zelda, before hitting the reigns so that Perfection once again started toward the gates, which were now opening again.

"Don't worry, Perfection, I don't blame you for not helping." The King said, patting his horse on the head. "You couldn't have possibly taken all those guards by yourself, but let's not dwell on the past any longer."

Spurring the animal once the gate was completely open, Façade rode away from the palace, reaching the bridge and galloping across toward the mainland. Where Link would have turned north to circle around to places like Tantari and Parappa, the King instead turned toward the south. This was the only road that went toward both Kings's Cross and the Southern Outskirts Province, and although it was a bit of a detour to Snake Palace all the way down on Lake Hylia, it was worth it to have the wizard at his side again.

Hopefully Agahnim had already received his message, and they would meet part way, which would save a lot of time… also it would mean less time that Zelda had to be alone, since she still had those night terrors, and no one was able to calm her like her cousin, Miranda. Even with all of the responsibilities of married life and being King, now that he was in his old armor, riding Perfection toward unknown dangers, Façade felt like he had five years ago when he had rode in from Arcadia to rescue his Princess.

Did he regret marrying Zelda and taking the throne? Not for an instant, but he did miss the freedom that came from being what the Queen called a carefree lay-about. In a way, he was envious of Link's position as Lord Sheriff, since his friend had all the power of any Lord of any Province that he entered, but was also always doing something new and exciting. Of course, now it was Façade's turn, and after conquering this Rebonock character, it was _he_ who would return a hero.

"Faster, Perfection!" The King exclaimed happily. "Onward to King's Cross! Onward to one more adventure!"


	7. Chapter 7 Parappa Desert

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Seven: Parappa Desert**

The wind was blowing the loose sand of Parappa Desert so fiercely that each grain felt like a tiny knife slashing across his skin, with Link's clothes and shield barely helping at all. Wiping his eyes again, the Lord Sheriff barely had time to move sideways, mostly out of reflex, before another bouncing rock flew right past his face. He had seen sand storms before, but never anything like this, and if such events were normal in this place, then he was starting to understand why it had been abandoned.

Looking around through the blowing sand, he was unable to see his horse as well, not that he was able to see more than about five meters in any direction, nor did he have much time for searching, with even more rocks incoming. _Boom!_ A flash of light off to the side gave Link a chance to see a little more clearly, spotting Sing with her arm outstretched as one of the rocks coming toward her exploded. Pulling back her arm just as quickly, the Lord Sheriff watched as a large sphere of energy formed in her hand for another strike… the same kind of energy that Ganondorf had been so fond of.

Broken from this flashback to his previous battle, by a rock grazing the back of his leg just enough to drop him to a kneeling position, Link started crawling toward where he had seen the magician, even though she was only visible for a moment when destroying rocks. Somehow the storm was still worsening, making the landscape even darker now, and the amount of rocks increased as if they were nocturnal predators drawn out by the sun's retreat.

"Sing!" He called, screaming above the wind as he got to his feet. "Sing, we can't just stay here! We have to…

His words were interrupted as another rock began its assault, hitting him in the back of the shoulder hard enough to knock the Lord Sheriff flat on his face, but the magician didn't get off so easy. After hitting him, the rock continued on to slam right into the dark haired woman's stomach, knocking the wind out of her as she was launched off her feet. She rolled backwards twice before coming to a stop where the dune started to slope… and the magician was no longer moving.

Without really thinking beyond the fact that someone was in trouble, Link stumbled over to her, dove onto the ground, and pulled her as tightly up against him as he could, while holding out his shield in front of their heads as best he could. Although not as big as Façade's family shield, it offered a small protection from the wind from where they were lying, and when the Lord Sheriff looked up toward the blocked sky, he could see more rocks bouncing overhead.

Every once in a while one of them would glance off his shield, each one hurting Link's arm a little bit more than the last, but he couldn't move it even for a second without risking leaving either himself or Sing unprotected. Still, with only miles of dunes and loose sand having been seen before the storm hit, he couldn't help but wonder where all of those rocks were coming from, but thankfully the storm soon started to let up.

First the rocks decreased in number, and then the landscape started to get slowly brighter as the wind became less harsh. The sand stung less and less until it couldn't even stay floating through the air, and when the clouds vanished completely, there was no sign that there had even been a storm in the first place. Still holding tightly onto the magician, mostly because it hurt incredibly bad to even _try_ moving his shield arm, the Lord Sheriff turned his head as best her could, but there was still no sign of the horse.

"My hero." The dark haired woman said sarcastically. "The storm's over, I don't think you need to hold me like this anymore."

"Hold on… my arm." He groaned, crying out when he tried to move it again. "I think it's broken."

In response to this, she pulled roughly away from him, making Link groan in pain while she got up to a kneeling position. Then Sing grabbed his arm, making him scream out loudly when she pulled it over to her so that she could see. Yes, according to her it was definitely broken, which probably could have been determined _without_ her having to twist it around several times, each one causing Link's screams to echo across the desert.

"Stop screaming like a woman, Link." She said, moving his arm again with the same result. "Now, you saved me from those rocks, and it wouldn't be right to make you face the first challenge like this, _so_ … I will heal your arm good as new… if you tell me that I'm prettier than Princess Zelda."

After saving her life during the sand storm and getting hurt in the process, it was ridiculous that the magician would do anything but immediately heal him out of gratitude, and the Lord Sheriff was starting to tell her this, when his words became a scream as she twisted his arm again. Trying to pull away from her, only to have even more pain while she repeated her demands, there was really no choice but to give in.

"All right, all right, you're prettier than Zelda!" Link yelled after the last twist. "Damn it, you're the most beautiful woman in Hyrule, just _stop_!"

Sing seemed satisfied, since she stopped twisting his broken arm, and then with the simply chanting of the word _Vitalidad_ , the pain started to go away. There was a light coming out from under where she placed her other hand on top of the break, and after a couple of seconds he could move it again. Even the soreness was gone by the time that the light faded and the dark haired woman let go, so he got up to his knees while moving his arm around; part of him wanting to strike her for putting him through that, and part of him wanting to simply move on.

"Thank you." Link said as they both got up. "But was it really necessary to humiliate me like that?"

"Humiliate you?" The magician laughed, brushing some of the sand from her face. "That was just a bit of fun… you'd never recover from it, if I _actually_ wanted to humiliate you. Now come along, or don't you fancy a stroll across the desert with _the most beautiful woman in Hyrule_?"

Trying to ignore that last dig, the Lord Sheriff instead turned his attention to locating his horse, but there was no sign of the animal anywhere. So the two of them walked for what was probably an hour, up and down the dunes of Parappa Desert, until scaling the largest dune of them all, and discovering a hard surface underneath his feet. Shifting some of the loose sand with his foot, Link discovered that there was carved stone spread across the surface of this unusually flat plateau.

Other structures were visible as well; parts of broken pillars and walls, some far taller and wider than others, as if there had been either a small town or a large single structure in place before the time Sing had mentioned when the water dried up. However, as fascinating as the discovery of such ruins was, it was trumped by the next thing Link spotted, which was first detected by the sound of a sharp _crack_ under his feet.

It didn't sound like wood or stone, so the Lord Sheriff bent down to brush some more sand out of the way, and what greeted him back was a sun-bleached white skull… or at least most of one. There were more bones scattered nearby, almost a complete set, and after continuing on, there was another sound of crack while they walked… and then another… and then another.

"There are plenty of those down there." Sing explained when he asked about them. "As you know, there have been others chosen to undertake this quest before you, but… for many of them, this place, this once great and now ruined _Parappa Palace_ , was the end of that journey."

Apparently Impa's long dead son was somewhere among them, although the magician couldn't remember where exactly he had fallen, now would she tell him what had caused it. Unfortunately, this was where the dark haired woman could help him no longer… now the Lord Sheriff had to venture off across the ruins on his own in search of the first challenge, and although Sing would give no details, she was more than ready to tell him not to worry, because he would find it.

Content to remain where she was, the magician sat down on a piece of fallen pillar, and Link drew his sword as he carefully started his way across the ruins. The crumbling remains of walls sometimes had features, like windows or parts of carved staircases that now went nowhere, but so far nothing had attacked him, nor had any traps been sprung. _Something_ had killed those previous chosen ones, so the Lord Sheriff remained on his guard until reaching the very center of the ruins, where an intact structure remained.

It was a carved relief, a big one, made of stone like everything else, but set in a plate that was mounted in between two pillars. There were markings all across the plate, but the language was foreign to him, and he was much more interested in the carved figure that adorned the second half of the place. Taller and stockier than he was, this figure carried a weapon similar to a spiked ball _morning star_ , and wore heavy plate armor in every place but its head. Its head, however, did not resemble a man's at all, instead looking almost like that of a horse.

Suddenly there was a burning sensation from the back of his tattooed hand, and when Link brought it up to see that the mark was glowing, he was amazed when the inscriptions on the carved relief began to move. At first they just shook, but then as if worms, they started crawling into different positions, swapping places with each other and bending until the whole language had become one that he could read relatively easily. Once completely rearranged and translated, it read:

Here in the great Parappa Palace, in this chamber far hidden away from its noble guests, sleeps a guardian. If you are a careless adventurer or a thief seeking to discover hidden riches inside these walls, then this is your last chance to turn back.

If you are a prisoner, sentenced to confinement within this chamber, then know that justice will be done. For by reading the words on this inscription, even in silence, is enough to summon your executioner.

Before Link could even begin to think about what he had just read, there was a powerful tremor in the ground, before the carved relief began to move. Its hands and arms pulling free of the stone first, the horse-headed figure began to take on a more lifelike color; white hair with black mane, red armor the color of blood, and a black morning star in its hands as the monster finished pulling itself free of the relief.


	8. Chapter 8 Reunion in Rauru

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Eight: Reunion in Rauru**

Continuing to ride down the southern road as the morning slowly faded into noon, Façade slowed down the horse's pace. After all, the Southern Outskirts were a long ride from the North Palace, so there was no point in driving Perfection into an early grave. Now at an easy trot, the King made sure to wave at the few travelers who stopped to bow to him once they noticed who he was. It was so refreshing to be away from the palace for a while, not that he wanted to be away from the Queen, but there was just something so liberating about being on his own.

"See, Perfection, just like the old days." He said patting the horse. "Just you and me, riding off to defend the realm from brigands, criminals, and all others who would do harm to the people."

Just like if it were yesterday, Façade remembered the rain storm that had engulfed the land as he crossed the border from Arcadia into Hyrule, and finding Manji Estate, home of Miranda and her father, Lord Rul, empty. Well… not _completely_ empty… Darknut had been there, ransacking the place, and not that the King had been afraid, but there was no denying that the red knight was an imposing figure.

" _Hold there, intruder, I am Prince Façade of Arcadia_." He had announced with sword ready. " _I demand to know what has befallen the owners of this house, and I was taught to rule with mercy, so if they are unharmed, you shall be allowed to leave the same. But be warned… if you have harmed Miranda in any way, you will not be spared my blade_."

Darknut had not been impressed, and their battle was begun soon after, leaving the red knight in a pool of his own blood, and Façade in not much better condition. It was bad enough having to face that monster twice, only to have his brother appear out of nowhere to demand vengeance. What the mysterious Rebonock wasn't aware of, however, was that being the King had not made him lazy. Taking every opportunity to sharpen his skills, Façade trained with the guards, and even Link when there was time, making him confident that he would emerge from the battle victorious.

There were less travelers on the road than he had expected, making the journey seem to take longer than it should have, and by the time that the sun was highest in the sky, the town of _Rauru_ was just appearing off in the distance. It was a small, almost a sister city to Ruto, where Link had recently returned their sacred trophy, expect it was made up mostly of woodcutters instead of miners. As he approached the few, single-floor buildings, the shallow grasslands were starting to give way to dense forests that seemed to surround the village as well as the road beyond.

Several groups of men carrying long saws over their shoulders were coming out of the forests about the same time that Façade passed the road sign, and this made sense because it _was_ lunch time, after all. It was going to be nice to eat a simple meal inside of a normal tavern, which he hadn't done since taking the throne, but as he was tying his horse to the hitching post after getting down, the King couldn't help but notice that a familiar looking carriage was sitting nearby.

The driver was asleep, and one of the dark horses grunted at him as if irritated, but the carriage _did_ have the emblem of the royal family carved into the side… and it _was_ facing north. No, there was no way that his luck could be that good, so he walked in through the doors of the tavern, to have everyone stop what they were doing almost immediately, leaving an uncomfortable silence now as he stood in the doorway.

"What are you all staring at?" A familiar woman's voice suddenly asked. "Haven't you ever seen your King before? So raise a glass to his health."

The common people at the tables and up at the bar cheered, all raising their mugs in a toast to Façade, and this helped to lighten to mood… especially since the lovely brown haired woman who had led the toast was none other than Zelda's cousin, Lady Miranda. Making his way across the room to her table, the King next spotted her husband sitting in the chair next to her. As he remembered, Agahnim the wizard was wearing robes, although more expensive looking these days, leaving only his blue hands and face exposed.

"Well, well, his majesty, King Façade of Hyrule." The wizard said with a slight laugh. "Join us, man, have a drink."

Not wanting to be rude, or having any plans of turning down the drink, the King sat down with his two old friends, and for a moment was able to recapture the old days once again. He remembered how the three of them and Link had huddled together in that cave in the _Eastern Forest,_ listening to everything Impa knew about Ganondorf… of course there were a few memories that were best left forgotten… the kind that the Southern Outskirts' Lord Governor was all too eager to bring up.

"So he says _'Release me at once, for I am Façade, Prince of Arcadia'_." Agahnim explained, recalling the first time that Façade and Link met. "And Link says back, _'of course you are, and I am Harkinian, King of all Hyrule… now shut up or I'll spur the horse and drag you through the mud'_."

When the King had first met Link, they had each assumed that the other was an agent of Ganondorf, and if not for the interference of an actual agent, the King was certain that he would have been the victor in their fight. However, the distraction allowed Link to knock him out, and the next thing he knew, Façade's wrists were bound, and he was walking behind his own horse while Link rode atop. Thankfully, Agahnim left out the part where Link had made good on his threat, dragging him through the mud until they reached the hideout where Impa verified his identity.

Of course this happy mood had to be ruined when Façade brought up what had brought him there, and it really had been a stroke of luck that the wizard and Miranda had already been on their way to visit, when they intercepted the messenger. Now that they were meeting in person, Façade explained the whole situation about Rebonock, and that now that he had made up his mind to face him, Agahnim's role was to be his _second_ instead of his advisor.

"So are you laying a trap for Rebonock?" Miranda asked, leaning in closer with excitement in her voice. "You want my husband to take him down for you?"

"Not at all, my dear Miranda." Façade explained. "I do not wish for Agahnim to interfere with the fight in any way… I simply wish him to make sure that nobody _else_ does, either."

"This all sounds pretty simple to me." The wizard replied. "And you've beaten Darknut on your own before, so how much worse could his brother be… his brother that wasn't man enough to stand by him during the fight with Ganondorf, and only shows his face now."

The King had to admit, it was tempting to simply send a detachment of guards to arrest this traitor and then have him executed, but that was just not the way he did things. Wherever Rebonock's loyalties lie, Façade _had_ killed his brother, making it understandable that he would want revenge. Was that revenge justified? No, but it was at least worth giving him a fair fight, so it was settled that the two of them would continue on to King's Cross, while Miranda went to the North Palace.

"Well, you _boys_ have fun with your little scuffle, then." Miranda said, shaking her head a little. "If you'd rather go down to King's Cross instead of staying with _us_ … I suppose that all Zelda and I can do is keep each other company… doing girly things like putting up each other's hair… and _bathing together_."

"B... b… bathing? _Together_?" Façade stammered as Miranda gave her husband a kiss before getting up to leave. "You're really going to do that?"

"Don't listen to her, Façade, it's a trick." Agahnim assured him while Miranda continued the tease by winking at them before walking out the door. "I mean, yes, they do that, but only when there's no men around. Ah, my King, if only you could teleport like I can… oh, the things you would see."

As pleasant as the images in his imagination were at the moment, these were not the kinds of thoughts that the King needed to be focusing on just before facing a challenger who was probably at least as skilled as Darknut had been. So after finishing their meal, Façade and Agahnim left the tavern, discovering that one of the carriage's dark horses had been left tied next to Perfection, while Miranda's carriage was long gone.

"I'm glad that Miranda is going to stay with Zelda." Façade said as they untied the horses. "Still, I hate to be away from her for any amount of time at all… she still has those night terrors, you know."

"The Queen is stronger than you think." The wizard replied. "Besides, if I were you, I'd be saving all my thoughts for this Rebonock character."

He was right, of course, so the King pushed the thoughts of his wife's nightly distress from his mind. Still, it was a long way to King's Cross from Rauru, so they continued south, making small talk as they ventured into the forest. The canopy of leaves provided by the trees that surrounded the road provided a break from the sun, but this was no time to rest… forested roads like these were often havens of bandits and highwaymen, but so far there were none to be seen.

"So how are things down south?" Façade asked, making small talk while watching his side of the road for danger. "I hear you've been putting a lot of rupees into renovations around your Province."

"Well, Eagle Prison is up and running." Agahnim answered, also watching his side of the road. "Moon Tower is currently being rebuilt, and Spectacle Rock is being made into a fortress again. Other than that, Miranda and I are focusing on improving trade flow, and giving the less fortunate a future."

The wizard had been the perfect choice for Lord Governor, but it was amazing for the King to think that just five years ago, Agahnim and Link had been nothing but forest bandits… well, fake bandits who put on a show to get a reward. It was one such performance that caused the wizard and Miranda to meet in the first place… of course, Façade couldn't understand how she could fall in love with someone who was trying to shake down her father, but…

"Stop there, travelers!" A figure warned, jumping out into the road. "One wrong move, and you're finished!"

It was a moblin, and the stocky dog-faced creature was holding a spear aimed right at the two of them. There was more movement as he finished the threat, and now more than a dozen similar creatures were coming out of hiding, each with a sharp spear, and now they were laughing as they encircled them at close distance, leaving Façade and Agahnim completely surrounded.


	9. Chapter 9 Horsehead

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Nine: Horsehead**

Of all the things that Link had seen both during the fight against Ganondorf, and after, nothing quite compared to seeing an armored horse… knight… thing pulling itself out of a stone relief was by far the strangest. Shaking off the last of the stone fragments and dust as soon as it was free, the beast snorted and let out a low neigh, before tightening its grip on the morning star weapon… and then it attacked.

 _Whoosh!_ He felt the rush of wind as the beast swung its weapon upward, the spikes on the balled end missing his face by only an inch, and forcing the Lord Sheriff to back off as the snorting horse monster stomped toward him. With a loud bray, it swung its weapon again, this time taking a chunk out of a nearby ruined wall when it missed him, scattering debris in all directions. It did, however, give Link a chance to make an attack of his own.

He had been forced to duck down to avoid the last swing, leaving only the beast's lower back open for a strike, so the Lord Sheriff swung his silver sword. It was a clean hit, perfectly aimed, but sparks flew as the blade tore across the beast's red armor, leaving not even a scratch when it was done. By this time the horse monster was ready to continue, and when it swung its morning star, Link cried out as two of the spikes raked across his chest.

There was a small spray of blood as the Lord Sheriff was knocked off his feet, and the stinging pain gave him only an instant to react, turning his body to the side so that some dust was kicked up when the morning star slammed into the ground. With a loud neigh, the beast raised its weapon up again, forcing Link to turn his body the other way to avoid the next hit, but this time he swung his shield, connecting with the beast's nose.

Letting out an irritated snort, the horse monster stood upright while twitching its nose, giving Link the chance to pull himself to his feet. At least now he was certain of the beast's weak point, so once standing again, he sliced toward the beast's throat, only to miss when it leaned back. With the momentum of his swing moving his arm outward, the Lord Sheriff barely had time to get his shield in the way when the horse monster made a powerful upward swing with its morning star that was right on target.

 _Bam!_ The spiked ball weapon might have hit the shield instead of his chest, but there was enough force in the blow to knock the small shield from his arm, sending it flying off to the side while Link was send flying backwards as well. He landed on the dusty ground so hard that the Lord Sheriff actually rolled backwards to a kneeling position before his vision came back into focus. Although the shield had saved his life, Link's chest still felt like it had been struck with a club, making it hard to breathe or move.

The horse monster was still coming, so he struggled to get up, only to taste blood and hear a ringing in his ears, when the morning star weapon was brought across his face. It wasn't a direct hit; only three of the spikes tearing into his cheek instead of the whole thing, which probably would have killed him, but it was enough to make the Lord Sheriff spin around before falling on his face.

Losing his grip on the sword as he fell, Link's vision was tilted to the side, making him partially unaware of how he managed to roll over and avoid the next blow with the morning star, which was hard enough to put cracks into the ground. In desperation, he grabbed a handful of sand, and tossed it right into the beast's eyes, causing the horse monster to bray loudly as he stumbled backwards, and giving the Lord Sheriff enough time to scramble away.

Even with his vision and hearing partially impaired, Link somehow managed to get himself behind one of the ruined walls before the beast could recover, and as his vision refocused and the ringing stopped, it became obvious that the horse monster was not pleased with this development. _Stomp-stomp-stomp_ , the beast snorted angrily as it wandered the ruins of Parappa Palace, searching for him, but thankfully starting off in the wrong direction.

Still breathing heavily, and feeling a sharp stinging pain in both his chest and face, Link knew that he needed to get his sword back if he wanted to have a _chance_ against the horse monster, and his shield would have been nice to have as well, but… he hadn't seen where it landed. The only weapon that the Lord Sheriff still had was his old boomerang, not that it was going to be of much help against the beast that was now hunting him, and now the horse monster was getting angry.

Braying loudly as it swung its morning star weapon, the beast knocked a large piece out of the wall next to it, hit something else, and then smashed the same wall so hard that the whole thing rocked back and forth. Gasping as he realized what that meant, the Lord Sheriff threw caution to the wind, running out of hiding, and then running toward the wall as fast as he could. This run probably would have been a lot faster if he hadn't been injured, but it was all worth it when he rammed into the loosened wall… and it fell toward the beast on the other side.

With a kind of rocky, scratching sound, the section of ruined wall tumbled downward, hitting the ground with a powerful _slam_ , and kicking up so much dirt and dust that it became impossible to see anything through the cloud. Silence followed, though, allowing a smile to start forming on Link's face as the desert wind blew away the dust... and then causing that smile to fade when he saw that the horse monster was still standing… about a foot from where the top of the wall had crashed.

He missed… the best opportunity he had gotten to kill the beast, and he had _missed_. Now the Lord Sheriff stood there, mostly unarmed, while the very much still armed horse monster just stood there, glaring angrily at him for several seconds. Then it stomped forward, neighing furiously as it stepped over the fallen wall, and swinging the morning star weapon wildly. To avoid these attacks, Link had to continuously jump backwards, finally managing to duck and move around the beast in order to throw his boomerang.

The curved weapon made a kind of whistling sound as it spun through the air, missing the beast's head completely as it turned around to continue the pursuit. As the boomerang flew out of sight, the horse monster swung its weapon again, this time catching Link in the side with its full force, stabbing and bashing him in the ribs at the same time, and knocking him down right next to where his sword had fallen.

Struggling to grab the hilt of his blade while the beast stood over him for the kill, the boomerang suddenly came backwards, striking the horse monster in the back of the head. Surprising the beast enough to make it lower its weapon while stumbling forward, the Lord Sheriff used what remained of his strength to stand up while stabbing his silver sword right through the side of the beast's neck.

Blood sprayed from its mouth as the blade was driven in, and the horse monster tried to back off, but it dropped the morning star weapon in the process. Now the beast was so focused on trying to remove the sword from its neck, that it didn't notice when Link picked up the spiked ball weapon, and swung it upward. _Crack!_ Making contact with the beast's nose, even more blood was sprayed as the horse monster was knocked onto its back, and now it was the Lord Sheriff's turn to stand over it.

Raising up the weapon, he brought it down on the hose monster's head again and again, bashing and smashing it until there was nothing left, and then he dropped the morning star in order to pick up his silver sword. Maybe it was the extent of his own injuries, but once the beast had been defeated, Link swore that he was able to feel something moving within the ground, as if the whole Kingdom were somehow adjusting to his victory.

"You did it." Sing's voice said, half in disbelief as she walked into view. "And you're still alive as well."

She had apparently found their lost horse, since the magician was now leading it across the ruins by the reins, but now that the rush of fighting the horse monster was starting to fade, it felt like Link's wounds were getting worse. In fact, it was becoming difficult to even stay standing up, so he let the sword again fall from his hand as he sunk to his knees. There was a terrible throbbing inside his head on top of it all, while his vision seemed to be getting slowly brighter until it was hard to look at anything at all.

"I have to tell you that less than half who have tried this quest have made it this far." The dark haired woman continued, getting closer to him. "Somehow I knew that you would, though."

Another rumbling sound came from behind, and although having to squint heavily from the brightness, the Lord Sheriff was able to see that the stone relief which had contained the horse monster was repairing itself. A few seconds later the carved figure of the beast was restored, and all Link wanted to do was get out of there, but first he needed to collect his things… everything was so hard to see, though.

"I can't find… my shield." He said weakly, his vision tilting each time he tried to move his head. "Do you see… my weapons… anywhere?"

Trying to feel around for his sword, Link found himself starting to fall, but was surprised when Sing knelt down to catch him. Yes, she was technically his enemy, and the one responsible for him having to go through this whole mess in the first place… but right now he was more than happy to rest against her. She was so soft… and she smelled so good, and at this point anything was better than getting another scrape from hitting the dusty ground.

For a moment the Lord Sheriff thought that he was starting to recover as the brightness began to dim, but then he realized that he was starting to lose feeling in parts of his body. The magician said something, but her voice was muffled and he couldn't understand the words… or anything else for that matter as he slowly lost consciousness.


	10. Chapter 10 Moblins in the Forest

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Ten: Moblins in the Forest**

"Down!" The moblin yelled, gesturing with its spear. "Off your horses! Drop your weapons! Empty your pockets! Do all now or lose your life!"

Looking at each other for a moment, Agahnim and Façade shrugged before slowly getting down off their horses. The stocky, bulldog like creatures jumped and grunted each time the pair made a move, going so far as to all step back a bit when the two of them turned to face their dozen attackers. Grunting again, the moblin repeated the rest of their demands, yelling louder and moving its spear even more threateningly, clearly certain that they had the upper hand in this situation.

"Well, isn't this interesting, Agahnim?" the King whispered while smiling and nodding to the creatures. "So, which one do you want?"

"I'll take the ignorant one." The wizard replied, nodding toward the one doing the talking. "Who decided to threaten us, rather than just put a spear through us when they had the chance."

Suddenly Agahnim vanished, almost instantly reappearing behind the talking moblin, and then chanting the word _hechizo_ while his hand was outstretched. Shimmering magical energy formed in the wizard's palm, shooting outward and causing the creature to scream as it was engulfed in a flash of white light… and when the light faded there was no longer a moblin standing there… but a blue, gelatinous bot.

The other moblins were so stunned by this transformation, followed by Agahnim raising his foot to squash the bot that had once been their ally, that they didn't notice Façade drawing his sword until it was too late. With a quick slash of the blade, the nearest creature's head was nearly cleaved off, and without wasting any time, the King rushed forward, stabbing the creature opposite of that one through the back so hard that the tip of his sword protruded through its chest just as the others were starting to react.

"Is a trap!" One of the others yelled to the others. "Is a trap to catch us! Strike them however you can, and then flee!"

Raising its spear and leaping at the wizard in order to stab him, the yelling moblin received the surprise of its life when a ball of flame formed in Agahnim's hand and he tossed it at the creature, making the flames disburse as it was struck in the chest. Stopping in mid-air as if it had struck a wall, and then crashing to the ground, the moblin shrieked as the flames spread across its body as it got up, causing it to start running into the forest… where it collapsed after getting just beyond the tree line.

Façade was making short work of them as well, slicing one's spear in half and taking off one of its arms with the same stroke, only to turn around and block a stab from another moblin with his shield… before slicing the creature's throat in a clean slash. Maybe these creatures were a threat to common travelers, but they were no match for the heroes who had fought against Ganondorf five years ago, shown again when the King ducked underneath the next moblin's spear swing, only to slash across its knees as he moved around behind it, and stabbed the creature through the back.

" _Hielo_!" Agahnim shouted, causing a moblin to freeze in place as it was engulfed by freezing white energy from his hand. "Careful, he's brittle."

"Enough! Enough!" One of the remaining four creatures shouted as the wizard pushed over the ice statue, shattering it. "No more, we surrender! We surrender!"

It and the other three creatures quickly dropped their spears, putting up their hands, and trembling with fear even as Façade sheathed his sword. The once bold bandits were now whimpering, professing how sorry they were, and how much they regretted what they had done… of course, with few exceptions, this was how almost _all_ criminals acted upon being captured or defeated.

"Bow down, you drooling ingrates!" Agahnim ordered before pointing at Façade. "Kneel before the King of Hyrule!"

Without hesitation, the remaining moblins bowed down at Façade's feet, again pleading how sorry they were, and how they didn't realize who he was, and begging him for mercy… again, exactly the same things that any captured criminal would do. Although intelligent and well-composed, Agahnim was also known to be absolutely ruthless when it came to fighting, and from the look in the wizard's eyes, it was clear that the last five years had not done anything to change this… but maybe there was an opportunity in this for mercy…

"All right, moblins, you've seen what happened here today." The King began, keeping his tone low and serious. "Your friends paid the ultimate price for their evil ways, but you… _you_ have a chance for redemption. If I let you go, do you swear on Queen Zelda's honor that you will gather up everything you have stolen, and return every item to their rightful owners, no matter how long it takes?"

"We swear!" The closest creature promised, while the others agreed. "We swear! No matter how long it takes, we will!"

This oath was enough for Façade to let the remaining moblins go, but since he was not a fool, the King added that if they betrayed him and broke their oath, he would have the governor of each Province, which included Agahnim, place a bounty on _all_ moblins until the guilty ones were found again, no matter where in Hyrule they ran to… or Arcadia for that matter, since his family still ruled there, too.

All of the moblins assured him that there was no need for such a bounty, and when Façade motioned for them to leave, the creatures wasted no time in trampling over each other as they sought the safety of the forest. To further the point of this mercy, Agahnim tossed a ball of flame so that it struck a nearby tree, scaring them with the small explosion so that they ran off through the trees even faster until they were out of sight.

"Well, that was a nice warmup for Rebonock." The wizard said as they turned back toward their horses. "It's good to know that five years of palace life haven't slowed you down all that much."

"Indeed… I just hope that they take the right lesson from this." The King explained while they mounted the horses and resumed the ride south. "Moblins have gained a reputation for serving Ganondorf five years ago, but they shouldn't have to keep suffering now that he is gone. It is my hope that even _they_ will one day be counted among the loyal subjects of Hyrule."

Agahnim was skeptical, since he had seen such creatures robbing travelers since _long_ before Ganondorf had come to the Kingdom, but if Façade wanted to try and rehabilitate them, who was he to question the King? Either way, the moblin bandits were long gone, and even more of the sun was slowly blocked as they made their way deeper into the forest. The increasingly thick canopy of leaves left a dotted pattern of small sunbeams on the road, and although it was enough to see the road, everything else was almost as dark as if night had fallen.

"Maybe I should give the lumberjacks a little more freedom." Façade suggested, squinting his eyes to see among the darkened trees. "Not to clear-cut the forests completely, but maybe to thin them out a little for, you know, the safety of travelers."

"Couldn't hurt." The wizard replied with a shrug. "There would certainly be less opportunity for bandits on roads like this if the sun could shine in once in a while."

For over an hour they rode through the darkened forest without incident, passing one or two carriages along the way, each with mounted torches lit, creating a small ring of orange light around them. This wasn't completely necessary since the road itself was illuminated by the dots of sunlight, but such practices usually made the passengers feel safer… not that the torches would have prevented such things as, for example, a _moblin ambush_.

"You're welcome." Façade said quietly as the second carriage passed. "Don't thank us, you're perfectly welcome for making the roads of Hyrule safe."

Then there was a sound… a sort of rumbling from high above as the dots of sunlight on the road became softer… clouded, and gradually less illuminating as their color changed from bright yellow to cloudy gray… and then a darker shade of gray while the rustling sound of falling water reached their ears. Only a few drops of rain here and there made it through the canopy, but their temporary shelter from the slowly intensifying shower didn't matter, since when it rained in Hyrule… it rained for _days_.

"Suddenly those torches don't seem like a half-bad idea." The King commented as the road grew darker. "I don't suppose that you could, maybe… light the way for us?"

Agahnim smirked for a second, before the two of them were slowly illuminated by flickering orange light while another ball of flame appeared in his hand. Instead of keeping it there like a torch, however, the wizard tossed it up ahead, lighting up a larger area as the flames disbursed, and then tossing another one… and another. This created a constantly illuminated road, and the rain was just enough to put out the flames before they could spread, but the rain was also a blessing, since most bandits took shelter at such times.

"It looks like we're in luck, Agahnim." Façade commented as more rain drops came through the canopy above. "If this rain keeps up, we might get all the way to King's Cross without further incident."

"Oh, it will keep up, all right." The wizard replied, adjusting his hood to keep the water from his face. "I just hope you don't mind facing Rebonock during a storm."

Lightning struck, briefly illuminating the road through the brightened dots again, and now the wind was starting to pick up, allowing a lot more rain to fall on them as the canopy was blown around. Thankfully the gust didn't last long, but it motivated the two of them to ride faster, hoping to maybe find better shelter at least until the storm reached a low point. There were scattered cabins along the forested roads, but they were few and far between, and could just as easily be used by more bandits as they could by travelers or lumberjacks.


	11. Chapter 11 Saria Town

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Eleven: Saria Town**

In one last breath before everything went dark, Link felt the dusty air of Parappa Desert fade away, replaced with a different kind of taste that was far more pleasant… a more humid, heavily scented air that was carried by a soft, warm wind. This kind of feeling could only be found deep in the forest, such as the one where he had been born, and as the Lord Sheriff opened his eyes, this was where he found himself.

Not the Eastern Forest of Hyrule's Southern Outskirts, but a thick, shaded forest just the same. The canopy of leaves blocked the sun, but not to the point of bringing darkness, a small stream of clear water ran alongside a well-traveled path, and there were large mushrooms growing among the underbrush… mushrooms that were being picked by a woman with long blonde hair. She was humming to herself as she tossed each one into the large basket, brushing the dirt and twigs off her simple dress when she stood up a moment later, and it was only then that he realized who she was.

"Princess Zelda?" Link asked, sitting up higher against the tree that he was leaning against. "What happened? What's going on?"

" _Mushrooms_ are what's going on, mostly." She replied, walking over and smoothing out her dress as she sat down with him. "My friends and I come out here from _Mabe Village_ to gather them for the festival… just don't eat them before they're cooked, or there might be, well… side effects."

As they talked, it became obvious that the Lord Sheriff had somehow come back to Koholint Island, where he had first dreamed of the cursed Princess. This forest was a new part of it for him, though, although Zelda seemed to know it well enough, the way she kept throwing more mushrooms into the basket while humming that same tune to herself. She also mentioned that she had felt it when he completed the first challenge, congratulating him on doing what few had managed before.

"It won't be much longer, Princess, I promise you." Link said confidently, taking both of her hands. "I'm going to break this curse, and use the Triforce of Courage to wake you up… that is what this island really is, right? A dream? Am I dreaming right now, too?"

"As far as it was explained to me, yes." Zelda replied, appearing a little sad when he smiled at her. "As I said before, Koholint is a place for deep dreamers, and although I've come to love it here, I _do_ hope that you will be the one to let me finally come home. So many others have tried before, but… please… I miss my home, and my family… please rescue me, Link."

The Princess looked like she was about to cry, so the Lord Sheriff kissed both of her hands at the same time, and promised her that he would. He told her about how much he wanted to meet her in person, and how beautiful she was, and how together they could go see all of the things that she had missed… but for some reason these words seemed to make her even sadder. Link was about to ask her what was wrong, when he gasped as his eyes suddenly snapped open… Zelda and the forest were gone, leaving him somewhere else… and there was pain.

"Ah, you're finally awake." A different woman's voice said. "I was starting to worry there for a moment."

Unlike inside the forest where he had been feeling fine, and the weather had been nice, Link's whole body was sore, and his vision was a little blurry as he tried to focus on his surroundings just in time to see a flash of lightning and hear thunder a moment later. The ground was soft… no, not the ground… he was lying on a bed, and he was no longer outside, either. The light came from some candles place around the small room, and rain could be seen coming down from out the nearby window… and he was also not alone.

"That monster really gave you a thrashing." Sing continued, sitting on the chair next to the bed. "Saving you was a stretch, even with _my_ power, and don't worry about the monster coming back; we're in _Saria Town_ … a _long_ way from Parappa."

According to the magician, after that horse monster was defeated, she had used her magic to save his life, and even located his horse before using that recorder to bring them to their current location. There, the dark haired woman had gotten them a room at the town's inn, and Link had been sleeping for the whole day… and she added that she had been impressed by his fighting ability.

"So, why Saria Town?" The Lord Sheriff asked, starting to sit up, but stopping after realizing that he was shirtless under the blanket. "Planning on heading down to the Southern Outskirts?"

"No, we're going _north_ , actually." Sing explained, getting up and blowing out the nearest candle. "I imagine you are tired of the desert, so you will be happy to know that your next challenge lies in a place that is quite the opposite."

The name of the place that she mentioned next was _Midoro Swamp_ , and while it was nice that they were going somewhere that he had at least _heard_ of, that did not mean that he felt safe in the slightest. From what Link had heard, it was nearly impossible for someone to make their way through on foot, let alone on the back of an animal, and since it was raining, that meant that the waters of the swamp were going to be even higher.

"There is a place toward the far end of the swamp." The magician continued, blowing out all the candles except for the one next to the bed. "But your challenge will not be as simple as the battle with the horse monster, oh no… when you get there, you will find that you will need something more than just brute strength."

Link would have been a fool to assume that the challenges weren't going to get more difficult, but as much as he tried to mentally prepare for whatever was waiting for him in the swamp, he became distracted when Sing explained that she was planning on going to sleep, as the reason for blowing out the candles. However, there was only a single, small bed in the room… and he was feeling better, so the only honorable thing to do was offer to take the floor so that she could have the bed.

"Nonsense, there is plenty of room." The dark haired woman replied, startling him by pulling back the blanket and sitting down. "Scoot over, Link, we're both adults, after all."

She sort of forced him to move back toward the wall by scooting toward him, and once she was able to lay down, Sing blew out the candle and got under the blanket with him. So far he had been able to keep from touching her by pressing his side against the wall as hard as he could, and of course the Lord Sheriff was feeling more nervous than he had felt before any fight, even against Ganondorf, especially since she kept moving closer.

"This bed isn't big enough to be on your back, Link." Sing said, moving still closer. "Lay on your side, so my rear end isn't hanging off the bed."

Rolling onto his side so that he was facing the wall, Link started to relax since now the dark haired woman had all the room she needed… that is, until his breath stopped when he felt one of her arms slipping around him, while the rest of her was now up against his back. Now she was burying her face into the back of his neck, letting the Lord Sheriff feel her warm breath, and get even more nervous about this whole situation until he couldn't take it anymore.

"Sing, stop. What are you doing?" He asked, kind of awkwardly rolling over so that they were now face to face. "We're _enemies_ , and you cursed the Princess of Hyrule, so we can't just… _snuggle_ like this."

"Aw, you've never had a _female_ adversary before, have you?" The magician asked, making him tense up again when she put her arms around him. "Don't worry, Link, I won't tell your sleeping Princess… that _is_ why you're acting so scared right now, right? You think she's going to wake up and just fall _right into your arms_ , don't you? I wonder how many _chosen ones_ before you had the same idea."

It was true that Link had never dealt with a female enemy before… especially a beautiful one who was wrapping herself around him… and laying her head on his shoulder. Damn it, with Ganondorf it had been easy; he just had to fight his way to his enemy, best him in open combat, and then walk away victorious, but with Sing… she was right there… the one who had caused this whole curse in the first place… _right there_.

"Link, I will remove your _entire_ skeleton if you attack me." The dark haired woman said softly, as if reading his thoughts. "Now just put your arms around me and go to sleep… unless you'd like to give me a _good night kiss_."

No, he was definitely _not_ going to kiss her, but with as tired as Link was from the battle in Parappa, he didn't seem to have much choice but to do as she said… putting his arms around her so that there was enough room for both of them to sleep… and then trying to relax. If there had been any other of his enemies right there with him, they would have been dead without hesitation, but Sing… she just didn't seem like the same kind of evil conqueror that Ganondorf was.

"Sing, why did you do it?" The Lord Sheriff asked. "Why did you put this curse on Zelda in the first place?"

"Honestly, it was her brother's idea." The magician explained with a half-yawn. "He was angry at her for not giving him all of the Triforces, and he wanted to hurt her in a way that no one could save her from. Looking back on it all now, I know that he was no good for me, but… I was young, and I would have done _anything_ to please him."

This angle of the story made sense, especially when Sing explained that she and Princess Zelda's brother had been engaged to be married, but that all changed after the curse. The Prince had suddenly grown a conscience for the first time in his life, and the dark haired woman had been exiled from the Kingdom immediately after. What she hadn't realized was that her aging had stopped the moment Zelda went to sleep, and even though he no longer loved her, it had been painful for Sing to watch the Prince and everyone else she knew grow old.

"That… that's awful." Link said once the story was finished. "Sing, I'm…

But his words were interrupted by her snoring, and with nothing left but the sound of falling rain to keep him awake, the Lord Sheriff soon found himself snoring right along with her.


	12. Chapter 12 Rebonock the Unyielding

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Twelve: Rebonock the Unyielding**

Shelter had been scarce throughout the night, and with the exception of a brief stay inside the cabin of a rather rude little man named _Bagu_ , who absolutely _reeked_ of alcohol, Façade and Agahnim kept up a continuous pace. The rains persisted as well, with the water seeming to fall harder on them after reaching the end of the forest, now that there was no canopy of leaves to shield them from both that and the wind.

Up ahead was the start of the coastlands; an area of sand and beaches that bordered the ocean, but couldn't be considered a desert because of the sparsely placed, but still existent plant life. In the southernmost part of this area was the largest graveyard in Hyrule, which was mostly reserved for Knights and other Nobles, since smaller towns usually had their own graveyards for the burial of common folk.

"King's Cross is at the center of the graveyard." The King commented as they rode across the wet sand. "Who knows why Rebonock chose _this_ place for our duel, but we must be on our guard just the same."

"He chose it to intimidate you." Agahnim explained, wiping some raindrops from his eyes. "He'll probably say something about _not having to go very far to bury you after he kills you_ , but these are just words."

Façade laughed this notion off, but there was some truth to him feeling a little intimidated by this place. After all, since he was the King of Hyrule, this place would be his own tomb someday… him and Zelda both… and Miranda… and Link and Agahnim both, since they had been knighted after Ganondorf's defeat. It was a humbling feeling, actually, knowing that all of them, the great heroes of Hyrule, would all end up buried under these very sands.

After about another hour of riding, the first row of white cross-shaped graves came into view, spotted more easily since the usually bright sand was darkened by the falling rain. This was good, because the wet sand was rapidly becoming mud, and the harder packed grounds of the graveyard would be easier on their horses. Reaching the first of the rows of tombstones also meant that they could slow down to a more comfortable, trotting pace, both to rest a bit before they got there, and also to make sure that they didn't rush right into a trap.

"Let's part ways here, Agahnim." Façade said shortly after slowing down. "Veer off to the side a ways, and then follow, but stay out of sight."

The wizard nodded, and then turned his horse to start traveling down one of the rows, as the King continued on toward the center. Now that the destination was so close, Façade felt a little vulnerable going the rest of the way on his own, especially since if Rebonock was anything like his brother, Darknut, then it was safe to assume that a completely fair fight was not going to happen.

Maintaining the slow trot on his horse, the King made his way through the graveyard, passing row after row of rain-cleaned white tombstones, until finally reaching the beginning of the large clearing that was King's Cross. At the very center was a large marker, a tombstone that was far larger than the others, but this was actually just the entrance to the underground chambers where all of the Kings and Queens of Hyrule were buried. Next to this marker, however, was something, or rather _someone_ that was out of place.

"Well, well, look who showed his face." The deep echoing voice of the helmeted figure said as he approached. "Perhaps you are not quite as much of a cowardly fraud as I believed you to be."

This figure was completely clad in blue armor that was similar to the set that Darknut had worn, with a shield on one arm, and a sword sheathed by the other, while he sat on top of a horse that was wearing a type of armor of its own. The difference between this figure and Darknut, though, was that he was also holding a lance as if he were prepared for a jousting match. Façade had not brought such a weapon, since he had been expecting a sword duel, so he hoped that his mirrored shield would be enough to help him if it came to that.

"I am not a coward, nor am I a fraud." Façade replied, stopping his horse a good distance from the armored knight. "I am Façade, King of Hyrule… and I assume that you are Rebonock, the brother of Darknut."

Yes, it was him… Rebonock the Unyielding, brother of Ganondorf's former partner, there to take revenge for their family… even though this blue knight had been nowhere to be seen during the actual fighting. It was surprising to the King, however, that Rebonock had apparently come alone. This realization marked the end of their talking, however, when the blue knight spurred his horse, lowering his lance as he charged at Façade.

Lightning flashed across the sky as his enemy got closer, with the King raising his shield for defense, and the thunder crashing just as Rebonock's lance struck the shield. There was a lot of power in the blow, and even though Façade mostly avoided it by leaning to the side, but even that glancing hit off his shield was enough to nearly knock the King off his horse. With just enough time to right himself as the blue knight turned around, Façade drew his sword, turning his own horse around while trying to come up with a plan.

"Steady on, Perfection." He said, taking a deep breath as he raised his sword. "Move when I nudge you; we've only got one chance at this."

Following his commanded like the loyal steed that it was, the horse moved off to the side on the signal, allowing the King to not only avoid the tip of the lance, but to also bring his blade down onto it near the base. _Crack_! Tearing its way through the lance as if it were made of paper, Façade's blade missed Rebonock's gloved hand by mere inches, leaving the blue knight holding nothing but the lance's hilt while the King prepared to…

In a surprise actions, Façade's plans were interrupted when Rebonock suddenly raised his other arm, striking him in the face with his small shield hard enough to cut his lip as the King's head was thrown backwards. Maybe if it hadn't been raining, he might have been able to recover from this blow, but with as slippery as the saddle had become, Façade tumbled backwards, landing on the hard-packed ground with a loud crash, and then hearing the blue knight's laughter as he scrambled to get to his feet.

"Pathetic!" Rebonock laughed as he drew his sword. "I refuse to believe that a clumsy fool like you could have _ever_ beaten my…

But now it was the blue knight's turn to be interrupted as an attack that he could have never expected, this time from the horse, Perfection, was upon him. Getting up on its hind legs and braying loudly, the animal began to pummel both Rebonock _and_ his horse with its front hooves until he was knocked onto the ground as well. With an even louder _crash_ than when Façade fell, the blue knight was dropped into the mud, where he also grabbed desperately for his sword, before getting to his feet.

"That was probably the funniest thing I've ever seen." Façade laughed as the horses chased each other away. "Your brother was just as overconfident as you are, by the way, but I'm going to give you a chance, here. If you stop this _right now_ , we can go our separate ways, and that will be the end of it."

" _Yield_? To _you_?!" Rebonock exclaimed as if truly offended. "No, pretender, not to one who took the throne that belonged to others. You're going to fight your _own_ battle this time, you fraud!"

Raising his sword, and coming forward for the kill, the blue knight's sword hit Façade's blade instead, but still had enough force to drive the King backwards. Rebonock attacked again, this time missing completely after slipping on some mud, and allowing Façade to make an attack of his own, dragging his sword right across his enemy's shoulder. Apparently Rebonock's armor was just as good as his brother's had been, because the sword just bounced off, but the King had anticipated this, so he raised up his foot, and kicked his enemy in the chest before he could recover, knocking the blue knight onto his back.

"Enough, Rebonock!" The King yelled, putting his sword at his enemy's throat. "Enough! We're done, do you hear me?! I understand that you want to avenge your brother, but what good will it do him if you get yourself killed? Now are you going to do the smart thing and go home… or am I going to have to run you through?"

"All right, all right!" The blue knight replied, slowly putting his sword back into its sheath. "I'll make the wise choice… I'll yield."

Letting out a sigh of relief that he would be able to end this peacefully, Façade, moved his blade away in order to help Rebonock up… only to cry out in surprise when the blue knight grabbed a handful of mud and threw it into the King's eyes. Using this distraction to get to his feet, Rebonock grabbed Façade's sword, and rammed it into the King's stomach as hard as he could, piercing his armor even with the sapphire ring's protection.

" _Yield_?!" The blue knight screamed, blood running down the sword as Façade gasped. "The only yielding to be done around here, will be done by your wife when I take her _and_ your throne, and then…

And then this victory speech was cut short as the King made his last attempt, grabbing the hilt of Rebonock's sword, and pulling it out of its sheath. With both of the blue knight's hands on the sword that was impaling Façade, there was no way for him to stop the King from stabbing his own blade right through the face hole in Rebonock's helmet. The blue knight's words became a gasping, sort of coughing sound as blood ran down this blade as well, and when Façade pushed him back, not only did he let go of the King's sword… but the blue knight did not get up again after falling.

Of course, Rebonock was not the only one to fall down, since Façade sunk to his knees a moment later, coughing some blood onto his gloved hands… giving a thought to trying to remove the sword from his stomach, but then forgetting all about that when a sudden increase in pain caused him to keel over onto his side. The still falling rain soothed the King a little as it landed on his face, but then he saw it… there was someone else… someone _much_ bigger than Rebonock walking out from behind King's Cross.

"Who… who are you?" Façade asked weakly. "Who's there?"

He was _big_ … tall and muscular, shirtless but wearing a large, spiked helmet, and carrying a heavy ball and chain in his hand. He looked at the motionless blue knight for a moment, before snickering and shaking his head.

"So, the great Rebonock is dead, and the King is to soon follow." The big man said as he approached. "Don't worry, your _Lowness_ , I've already sent a man to tell your wife about your death… and that I, _Boss Gooma_ , cousin of the great Ganondorf, will soon be there to.. _comfort_ her."

There was nothing Façade could do as the big man swung the ball and chain over his head, and brought it down to crush him… but then Agahnim appeared out of thin air, chanting the word _Reflejar_ while holding out his hands. A barely visible distortion formed in front of them, and when the ball swung into it, the metal object was bounced right back into Gooma's face, making him groan in pain and surprise as the big man stumbled backwards.

" _I_ might have something to say about that." The wizard replied to his earlier comment as a ball of flame appeared in each hand.


	13. Chapter 13 Midoro Swamp

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Thirteen: Midoro Swamp**

As awkward and nerve-wracking as it had been to share that bed with Sing while he finished recovering, Link found himself wishing to be back in that room soon after sunrise, when they left Saria Town. The good news was that thanks to the magician's powers, the Lord Sheriff was back to full strength… but it was still raining pretty hard when they left the inn, leaving both of them soaked even before the horse reached the village limits.

North, past the grasslands, which were already becoming waterlogged, and then onward into the marshes while the morning sun moved up behind the heavy, gray clouds. Link didn't say very much during the ride, still feeling uneasy because of how they had spent the night, and even now as they rode toward Midoro Swamp, the dark haired woman's arms were around him while she had her body pressed against his back.

The way Sing acted toward him, the Lord Sheriff wasn't sure if she was just toying with him, or if she actually liked him, or… man, it was so _frustrating_ to have an enemy like this. She was so beautiful, and Link had slept better than he had in _years_ while holding her, but she was also the one who cursed Princess Zelda in the first place, and who even _knew_ how many others she had led to their deaths on this _exact same quest_?

"I would stop the horse here, if I were you." Sing said as the water was starting to get higher. "You'll have to go on foot from now on."

He stopped the horse like she said, but the magician surprised him when she didn't follow after he jumped down. Apparently this challenge was one that Link had to complete on his own, and although she wouldn't give him any real details, the dark haired woman instructed him to walk through the swamp until he reached the old entrance to the cisterns. He was familiar with such places; the Southern Outskirts had tunnels that ran underground to prevent flooding during storms… but _those_ old drains had been full of man-eating _Zoras_.

"As I said before, you will need more than brute strength for this." The magician continued, looking off toward the swamp. "Be careful, Link… only a _handful_ of those chosen for the quest have managed to succeed here."

Well, that was just _great_ , Link thought as he turned around to face the swamp, but somehow it gave him comfort when the dark haired woman added that she would be waiting for him _when_ he succeeded. This comfort was added by another of those warm, genuine smiles of hers, but topped with confusion when he remembered that his quest was to wake Princess Zelda. He just knew that he and the original Princess were meant to be together, regardless of what the magician said, and with that, he started into the swamp.

Within three steps beyond the marshes the water was up past his ankles, and in another five steps the water was up to his knees, but thankfully this was as high as it decided to go. A flash of lightning cut across the sky above, followed by crashing thunder and a sudden gust of wind as the rain started coming down harder, made the Lord Sheriff briefly consider exactly what in the hell he was doing there. This place was miserable… this whole _quest_ was miserable… and who was to say that he would be able to succeed where so many others had failed?

At least wondering about this made the walk across the swamp seem shorter, and it was actually a good thing that it was raining, since the falling water tended to scare off the larger insects and predatory creatures of the marshlands… which made no sense to him, since such creatures spent their whole _lives_ in some kind of water. Oh well… it was hard enough to trudge through the mud and knee-high water without having to stop and kill something every ten seconds, so he decided not to worry about it.

Eventually the building that Sing had described, in fact the _only_ building in the entire swamp came into view; a small stone structure that was mostly overgrown with vines and algae, that would have probably sunk into the swamp if not for the maze of tunnels that ran below it. The whole place was dark and foreboding, actually making Link wish that he was still at the dry and brightly lit Parappa Palace ruins, especially when he got close enough to see down into the entrance.

Beyond the doorless opening was a stone staircase that had a constant stream of water running down its stone surface, but beyond that there was no light at all. There were no lanterns, no old candles, not even any wall mounted torches that could be dried out and reused… and yet the Lord Sheriff could see down to the bottom of the stairs somehow. Well, no one said that the challenge was going to be easy, so after taking a deep breath, Link took that first, echoing step through the entrance.

 _Splash-cong, splash-cong_ , his footsteps producing noise that made being stealthy impossible as he moved down the stairs, the Lord Sheriff eventually reached the bottom, where the cold water was still ankle-deep, and yes, he could still see. Apparently there were small openings in the top of the rounded tunnels that branched away from the stairs, and although they were obviously for letting more water drain in, they also let in small amounts of sunlight.

Each hole was small, but there were a lot of them, so even with the sun being blocked by clouds, there was enough light to at least let him see the tunnels and their features. Of course, now that Link was down inside of the storm drains… where in the hell was he supposed to go? There were several different tunnels to choose from, and they all looked the same, but on the other hand if some of the other chosen ones had figured out where to go, then there had to be _some_ kind of difference.

Looking around at the walls, ceiling, and floors of each tunnel one at a time, but there was nothing to distinguish the first tunnel from the second one… or the third one… or the forth… wait a second, the back of his hand was starting to hurt again. Just as it had done at the ruins of Parappa Palace, the mark on his hand was glowing just a bit when he was examining the fourth tunnel, only to stop when he moved past it.

"Well, that was… easier than I thought." Link said, seeing it glow again when he moved back to the fourth tunnel. "Number four it is then."

Sloshing his way down the tunnel, while trying to avoid the water that was dripping down onto him through the holes, the Lord Sheriff was trying to make as little noise as possible so that he could listen for any approaching threats… not that the constantly flowing and splashing water was making this easy. The good news was that anything coming after him was going to have to come from either directly in front or behind, since there were no side passages in the tunnel, but the bad news was that the floor was suddenly missing when he took his next step.

 _Whoosh_! After falling forward, and hitting the ground again, Link realized that the floor had not disappeared, but instead become a steep downward slope when he wasn't paying attention, and now he was sliding down head-first into the unknown. The Lord Sheriff wasn't sure how far down he had gone, since the speed of the rushing water made it hard to judge distances, but when the ride finally stopped, it ended with a splash into water that was _a lot_ deeper than his ankles.

In fact, he had to get to his feet, fighting to stand up in the now waist deep water, and discovering that he was now inside of a large, open chamber. The ceiling was much higher, but there were still multiple small holes with water and light coming through, dimly illuminating the area, at least enough for him to see that he couldn't get back up the way he came. There also didn't seem to be any other passages leading out of the chamber… but that was impossible, because the water was still flowing.

"Okay… how does the water get out?" He whispered to himself, looking around. "How does…

" _It does not_." A whispering voice echoed in the darkness. " _Nothing gets out of here_."

The echoing was so bad within the chamber that it was impossible to tell where the voice had come from, but then it was gone. Now that the area was more open and the water was deeper, the Lord Sheriff drew his silver sword, trying to stay still and listen for movement as he looked around. Nothing in the air or on the walls that he could see, nor was the water rippling aside from near the drains or when he moved himself… so where had the voice come from, and more importantly… where had it gone?

" _Hopeless._ " The same voice whispered again. " _Doomed… doomed from the start_."

A flash of light from behind; orange light that caused Link to duck down as a strange object flew overhead, and while at first he thought that it was a fireball like the kind that Agahnim was so fond of, but when it slowed down and circled back toward him before hitting the wall, he realized that it was no fireball. This thing was a perfect, glowing sphere, big as a watermelon, flashing between orange and maybe… blue… with something at the center… something that almost looked like a… skull?

Ducking down again as a second object flew over his head, and then another… and another… from out of nowhere there were now more than a dozen of those glowing skull objects flying around the room, forming a kind of snaking circle that illuminated the whole chamber for several seconds, each of them whispering similar warnings about _doom_ and _no one getting out of there_ , and whatnot… before suddenly splitting apart and crashing into the water at different points around the chamber.

A kind of rumbling was both heard and felt as the whole chamber started to shake, and then something else appeared. It was strange, a kind of viney thing like the tendrils of a spreading plant; several of them appearing, one at each point where one of the glowing skull objects had crashed into the water, and growing up the wall a short distance. But there was something else, too… tangled within each of the viney plants was a skeleton, wrapped up as if restrained in a net or a web of some kind.

" _Your quest leads to nothing but death_." One of the skeletons whispered. " _Run… flee while you still can_."

" _There is no hope_." Another of them added. " _This quest is a trap that leads here_."

" _Run… run for your life_." A third one warned. " _Forget the Princess… forget Hyrule… we all failed, and you will, too_."

Now their words were starting to bother him, as did this whole scene playing out before him in general… but what they were saying… were these all that was left of the chosen ones who failed in this place? There was no more time for thinking about it, though, as the water at the center of the chamber started to churn, and with it, a figure started to rise up… a figure that was wearing old, vine-covered armor… and holding a rusty sword.


	14. Chapter 14 Gooma's Allies

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Fourteen: Gooma's Allies**

Boss Gooma let out an angry yell as he swung the ball and chain at his target, but Agahnim simply leaned backwards to avoid it, before moving in to punch the big man with a fist full of flame. Gooma grunted as his face was singed, and then more so when the wizard struck him in the stomach with another fiery fist, followed by spinning around and kicking the big man in the chest.

Gooma lost his balance and fell onto the hard packed ground, growling angrily as he punched the mud before getting to his feet. Now the big man was swinging the chain wildly, breaking a piece off of a nearby tombstone in his efforts to hit the wizard, who simply vanished, reappearing off to the side with his foot stuck out to trip the big man in the middle of his swing. Again losing his balance, Gooma stumbled forward and caught himself on another tombstone, only to have Agahnim appear in front of him with his outstretched hand on the big man's chest.

" _Hielo_!" The wizard shouted as white energy gathered underneath his hand.

Now Gooma screamed as his body was assaulted with a cone of white, freezing energy that coated most of his torso in rapidly spreading frost. He reeled backwards in an attempt to get away, managing to avoid some of the cold, but still falling onto his back, and smacking his body with his hands to try and warm back up. But Agahnim wasn't quite done just yet; aiming his hand at the big man and chanting the word _Hechizo_ , so that he would be engulfed in a flash of white, transforming energy.

Gooma must have gotten his weapon in the way, since the ball and chain was gone and the big man was still himself when the light faded, so the wizard simply gathered a ball of flame in his hand, before tossing it. The big man grunted in pain when the fire disbursed against his body, getting louder and angrier when Agahnim hit him with a second ball, and then a third, before being forced to turn his attention back to the wounded King.

"Cowards, _both_ of you!" Gooma yelled as the wizard used his magic to start healing Façade while carefully removing the sword from his abdomen. "Without your damned magic, I would crush you in a fight, just as I would have done to Ganondorf! Face me with no magic, wizard!"

"I'll live now, I think." Façade groaned weakly. "Stop him, Agahnim… don't let him remain a threat to the Kingdom."

"Very well." Agahnim replied, ending the spell early and turning to face Gooma. "And I will do it _without_ the use of my magic."

Balling up his fists, the wizard ran toward the big man just as he was getting to his feet, ducking down to avoid being grabbed, and then leaping back up with an uppercut to Gooma's chin. Grunting as his head tilted a little, the big man managed to grab Agahnim's arm, but whatever he had planned was stopped when the wizard kicked him in the side of the knee. With both hands, Agahnim grabbed onto the wrist that was holding him, twisting it back while bringing his knee up into Gooma's jaw when he stumbled forward, and then spinning around to kick him in the nose.

"Well, you _certainly_ crushed me without my magic." The wizard said as the big man fell onto his back. "So what was your plan? You and Rebonock were going to usurp the throne of Hyrule, just like Ganondorf and Darknut tried before you? They failed, and they were a _hell_ of a lot more competent than _you_ are."

"No! I am _not_ a failure!" The big man yelled, starting to get up again. "I will succeed where Ganondorf failed! I will seize the throne of Hyrule, and then when I bring my cousin back to this world, he will bow down and serve _me_! _Wosu Pack_ , attack!"

For a moment Agahnim was wondering about what he meant by _bringing Ganondorf back to this world_ , but then there was movement behind several of the tombstones that surrounded King's Cross, before more figures started to emerge. There were several of them, more than two dozen in fact, furry wolf-like soldiers wearing light armor and brandishing small blades. These kind of snarling, feral creatures were probably not much of a threat on their own, but this became a different story as their numbers increased.

"Stay still and low to the ground, Façade." The wizard warned as the creatures charged at them from all directions. " _Quake_!"

With purple energy gathering around his hand, Agahnim raised his fist into the air, and the ground shook as if there were an earthquake happening, when he punched it. All of the wosu creatures, Gooma, and nearly the wizard himself, were knocked off their feet, but Agahnim managed to keep his balance enough to begin preparing for his next, much more powerful spell… one that involved the swirling cold winds that were now gathering above his raised hands.

"Kill the wizard!" Gooma ordered as he and the creatures got up. "Kill the pretender King! Bring me their heads!"

"Too late, Gooma!" Agahnim yelled as the spell was finished. " _Ether!_ "

With the chanting of this word, the winds that had gathered above his arms shot outward in all directions, changing the falling rain into snow, and reducing all of the wosu creatures to shimmering blocks of ice. As he figured, the King's magical mirrored shield protected him from the spell, but _Boss Gooma_ had not been so lucky. Although the big man had not been turned into a block of ice like his minions, most of his body was now reddened with frostbite, leaving him on his hands and knees, groaning in agony while the falling snow once again turned to rain, quickly washing away all evidence of the spell.

Narrowing his eyebrows, gritting his teeth, and starting to get up, the big man was preparing to continue his attack, when Agahnim walked over and kicked him in the mouth, making Gooma roll over onto his stomach while his spiked helmet was sent rolling across the ground. Next grabbing his arm, and twisting it around behind him, the wizard forced the big man to his feet, marching him over to the wounded King, and then forcing him to again lie face down in the mud.

"You're going to die for this treason, Gooma." Agahnim declared, twisting harder on the big man's arm. "But first you are going to apologize to your King, aren't you? You're going to declare yourself to be his _loyal subject_ , and then _beg_ him for the mercy that _I_ would never give, isn't that right?"

He twisted Gooma's arm even harder, almost to the point of breaking, before gathering balls of flame in his hands, which caused the big man to scream even louder as they burned his skin. This agony was becoming so great that Gooma was just starting to say something, when suddenly something just… _appeared_ between them and Façade… a hooded figure in red robes, wearing an elaborate gold medallion around his neck. Upon seeing this figure, Agahnim froze in place, his eyes wide, and his mouth running dry as the figure just looked down at him.

"Hello, son." This figure said calmly. "This is going to hurt."

With a casual wave of his arm, and the formation of a large energy sphere in his hand, the figure swatted Agahnim, while the energy sphere's explosion lifting the wizard off his feet. There was so much force in the blast that Agahnim was sent flying backwards, where he bounced off of one of the tombstones before falling into the mud. As for Gooma, after slowly untwisting his arm, he got up to his hands and knees, appearing to be about as surprised to see this figure as Agahnim was.

"Carock?" The big man asked, still coughing a little. "I thought you didn't want anything to do with this? What are you doing here?"

"Aside from saving your life, you mean?" The hooded figure replied with a slight laugh. "Why, I've come to take my long lost son home, of course. I had all but given up hope of recapturing him through normal means… but then I heard that you and Rebonock were challenging the King, and who better for to bring with him than _Agahnim_?"

Carock was starting to laugh again, but then he realized that the wizard was starting to recover, so he vanished, reappearing right in front of Agahnim… and then somehow splitting himself into three different, identical figures. Without warning, they attacked the wizard, one of them avoiding his attempts to defend himself, while the two others struck. For a moment or two the wizard held them off by throwing balls of flame, or vanishing himself, but he was quickly overwhelmed.

The three figures struck him again and again until he lost his balance, and then they all began to kick and stomp Agahnim after throwing him onto the ground. Several spells were unleashed as well; bolts of lightning, more spheres of energy, and beams of ice, each making the wizard scream until he was no longer able to fight. The three figures merged themselves back into a single Carock once the brief struggle was over, and then he picked up Agahnim, throwing the wizard over his shoulder, before vanishing without another word.

"I can't help being touched by family reunions." Gooma said, getting to his feet while the King started to realize how much the situation had changed. "Now Agahnim gets to spend _plenty_ of time with his father, while you and I are left for some _private time_ of our own."

Façade had only been partially healed, still feeling the pain of his wound as he struggled to get up, only to see stars for a second when the big man's fist went across his face. The King had only just fallen back into the mud, when Gooma grabbed him by the long hair, using it to make Façade stand up, so that the big man could slug him in the stomach with a hard _whack_! Catching him before he could fall over again, Gooma used the momentum to flip him over, slamming the King down on top of a coffin-shaped monument.

"Not so powerful without your _friends_ , are you?" The big man growled, ripping the shield from his forearm, and tossing it aside. "Where is your wizard now, little man? Where is he?!"

Taking his sword and discarding it as well, Gooma wasn't finished, painfully ripping the blue sapphire ring from his finger, and then backhanding the wounded King before removing every piece of his armor from his body. Soon he was in only his underwear, making it even easier for the big man to pick Façade up over his head, and slam him onto the ground, before whistling as one would do for a horse.

A great big riding beast slowly clopped its way into view a few seconds later, and Gooma stomped his large foot down hard onto the King's back, immobilizing him so that his wrists could be tied to the back of the beast with a rope. Stopping to kick Façade in the ribs several more times, before going to reclaim his fallen helmet, the big man proudly walked back over to the riding beast, and slowly mounted it.

"Your possessions will be taken to your Queen." Gooma said, looking back while settling into the saddle. "Nothing like a trophy to make her more compliant, now is there? No hurry, though… you and me are going to take the _long_ route."

Hitting the reins, the riding beast started off between the tombstones, pulling Façade back down into the mud as he tried to get up, and then dragging him behind. Then Gooma spurred the beast, making it go as fast as possible while lightning and thunder crashed once again through the sky.


	15. Chapter 15 Those Chosen Before

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Fifteen: Those Chosen Before**

This was like something out of a nightmare; trapped down inside the old Midoro cistern with barely enough light to see, while the vine-wrapped skeletons whispered warnings of doom, and worse yet, the large figure rising up in the center of the chamber. Its armor might have been shiny once, but those days were long past, and the vines that clung to the metal were almost more like engraved patterns. Its helmet had a full face shield, and its sword was heavily rusted, making the figure even more imposing.

" _Welcome, young hero_." The figure whispered, its voice seeming to echo off the walls. " _Tell us… what are you expecting to find all the way down here… in the dark_?"

"I've come to face the challenge." Link answered confidently. "I seek to reclaim the Triforce of Courage, and free Princess Zelda from the curse."

The Lord Sheriff expected these figures to respect his resolve, or to maybe even become angry and attack him, which he was prepared for by keeping his hand on his sheathed sword. However, what he did not expect was laughter… loud, echoing laughter that came from everywhere at once, from both the figure and the trapped skeletons. There were no indications that anything was going to attack him, but that laughter was almost unbearable.

" _The hero wants to save Zelda_." One of the trapped skeletons said when the laughter stopped. " _I wanted to save her once, too… I was a fool_."

" _I thought I was invincible after Parappa Palace_." Another skeleton added, pulling against the vines that looked like they were tightening to restrain it. " _But then Sing lured me down here_."

" _Zelda was supposed to be mine_." A skeleton on the other side of the chamber groaned. " _From the moment I met her on the island, I fell in love, and knew that she and I were destined to be together… but I was only destined for this place_."

These warnings continued as one by one, the skeletons told a fragment of their story, as if each had once been a hero that was chosen to undertake this quest. But if that were true, then what had happened to leave them trapped by the vines? So far nothing had attacked him, nor was anything moving toward him as he looked around, but Link was not about to let down his guard for any reason.

" _The sleeping Princess does not love you_." The armored figure said, some water gushing out from under its helmet as it spoke. " _She will never be yours; you are throwing away your life for nothing_."

"This quest is _not_ for nothing." The Lord Sheriff finally replied, drawing his sword. "And who are _you_ to say what Princess Zelda will do after I save her?"

Again all the skeletons and the armored figure started laughing, some of their bones rattling while the vines tightened around them, but this time it made Link angry. Determined to stop the annoying sound that they were making, he trudged forward through the waist deep water, swinging his silver sword as soon as he was close enough, and hearing a loud _clang_ when it struck the figure's helmet. The laughter certainly stopped as the seemingly empty helmet flew across the chamber, but no sooner had it splashed down into the water, when there was a scraping sound as another helmet rose up from inside the armor to take its place.

This new helmet was the same style, but lacked the face shield, revealing that this one was also empty. Reflexively taking a step back, mostly out of surprise, the Lord Sheriff gritted his teeth before attacking again, this time not only cutting off the figure's helmet with his sword, but also one of its arms. He stopped upon realizing that there was nothing at all inside of the armor, causing the trapped skeletons to start laughing again as a new armored arm extended out from the torso… but there was something different about the helmet this time.

No, it wasn't a helmet at all, it was more like… a _skull_. Just like the trapped skeletons that were bound to the wall of the chamber, the grinning skull had vines that were wrapping around it, tightening in reaction to its every move. The armored figure was laughing again now too, the vines spreading into its mouth when it did so, and making Link feel a lot less confident, as he had never seen anything quite like this in his life.

" _Fear not, hero… for all is not lost_." One of the skeletons whispered. " _You cannot triumph here, but we… all of us… can spare you from our fate_."

" _There is no hope for us_." Another of them added as a crack of light appeared in the wall. " _But for you, we offer an escape_."

Golden yellow light began to fill the chamber as the crack widened, expanding into a hidden passage where sunlight could be seen coming down from above a stone staircase, as if the rain storm on the surface had stopped. More vines began to come up from the water now, increasing the size of each of the skeletons' prison, and also binding each of them more tightly, including the armored figure.

" _This path leads beyond Midoro Swamp_." The armored figure continued. " _Forget this quest… forget the Triforce and the Princess… escape this place, and then leave Hyrule… no one will ever know_."

Staring at the path, and feeling the edges of the warm sunlight, the Lord Sheriff was certainly tempted to use what might have been the only available way to escape this place, but something was wrong. For one thing, the holes of light on the ceiling of the chamber were still clouded, meaning that the rain had not actually stopped just yet, and there was also the fact that the laughing skeletons had fallen silent.

Yes, aside from the falling water, which somehow didn't enter the glowing escape route, there were no sounds at all within the chamber, making it somehow even more frightening than when the bones had been talking. The obvious choice was for the Lord Sheriff to escape through the tunnel, but… nothing in this place seemed to completely add up… like everything that Link was seeing was wrong somehow.

" _Do not share our fate_." Another of the skeletons warned after several seconds of him doing nothing. " _You can escape the vines… you can escape this quest… you can run away and no one will Know any better… just run for the passage… quickly_."

"No!" Link loudly declared, silencing the voices. "I won't pretend to understand what is happening here, but I am not some coward who will sneak away from his responsibility! I did not choose this quest, but I didn't choose to fight Ganondorf, either, and I _didn't_ run away then!"

With that, the Lord Sheriff came forward, swinging his sword at the armored figure, and separating its skull from its body, just as he had done to its two helmets. This time all of the skeletons screamed as the chamber shook for a second, the vines dragging each of their captives back under the water while the sunlit passage slammed shut, and then the chamber was dark… dark except for the clouded light coming from above… and from what was now rising from the water in place of the armored figure.

It was like the floating, glowing red and blue skulls that he had seen upon first entering the flooded chamber, but about three times their size, and with long horns coming out the sides of its temples. Still standing there with his sword ready, the Lord Sheriff thought he was going to have to fight this… _creature_ , as well, but instead of attacking him it just floated up to the center of the room and stayed there.

" _Well done, hero_." It whispered, echoing just as the other voices had done. " _You stood your ground in the face of fear and damnation… something that only a few before you have managed. Had you run for the passage, and shown yourself a coward, your skeleton would have been added to the eternal prison of this place_."

It was a hard thing for him to hear that those bound skeletons had actually been the chosen heroes who came before him, but even if they _had_ become afraid and tried to escape the remainder of the quest, that didn't mean that they deserved to be trapped down in the Midoro cistern for all time. Link then swallowed hard, realizing that without Sing's vague warning about needing more than brute strength to pass this test, he might not have understood what to do… but, hadn't she warned the others?

"Free them!" He ordered, pointing his sword at the floating creature. "Release all of your victims at once!"

" _Such bravery, even when the challenge is complete_." The creature whispered as it started to fade away. " _I wish you luck, hero… maybe you will succeed where no others have before you_."

With that, the glowing, flashing skull was gone, faded away into nothing… but wait a moment… the whole chamber was fading away as well. Everything was vanishing around him, and when it was finished, Link was standing somewhere else… now hearing water running behind him, the Lord Sheriff discovered that he was standing back at the first junction after entering the building, but… all of the tunnels were blocked… as if they had collapsed a very long time before.

His sword was still sheathed, noticing it just as the pain he was feeling from the mark on his hand stopped, leaving Link with nowhere to go but back up the stone stairs to Midoro Swamp. So what… had the whole thing been a hallucination from when he reached the bottom of the stairs? Had there actually been a chamber of bound skeletons, and a confrontation with the armored figure, or had that all been in his mind as well?

This whole situation was making his head hurt, so the Lord Sheriff turned around, starting up the stairs while realizing that he felt tired. So tired, in fact, that his legs were a little wobbly, and he was already out of breath after just starting toward the rain soaked surface. The falling rain and cool wind made Link feel a little bit better once he reached the top of the stairs, and stepped out into the fresh air, but he was starting to get sleepy now.

Trudging slowly through the ankle deep water of the marshes, the Lord Sheriff wiped the rain from his eyes, and thought he spotted the figures of Sing and his horse off in the distance. It was just a little further to solid ground… why was he so exhausted anyway, especially if the whole ordeal had been in his mind? Whatever the cause, he was tired… so tired, that he had just stepped out of the water and back onto solid ground… when Link fell forward as the need for sleep was victorious.


	16. Chapter 16 Parutamu Assault

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Sixteen: Parutamu Assault**

"I feel _much_ better knowing that your husband is with Façade, Miranda." Queen Zelda said as she and her cousin walked through the corridor, arm in arm. "With Link having run off with that _awful_ Sing all by himself, I didn't want my husband to leave at all."

Even though the King had only been gone for a couple days, Zelda had felt a strong sense of relief when her favorite cousin had arrived in her carriage, since now she wouldn't have to be alone. True, there were plenty of guards and servants roaming the halls of the North Palace, but ever since spending all that time as Ganondorf's prisoner, the Queen only felt truly safe in the presence of one of the ones who had stood up to him.

Not that Zelda was helpless, at least… not any more. Over the past five years, she had been learning how to fight beyond simply defending herself long enough to escape, and although Façade had never gotten around to teaching her the sword, Link had taught her everything he knew about using a boomerang and a bow, while Miranda had been trying her best to pass on the hand to hand techniques that she had learned from Agahnim.

The Queen was not exactly proficient at using her hands and feet to subdue an enemy, but the boomerang had come natural to her, as seen by her ability to knock the King off his horse without taking extra time to aim, and her archery skills were… well, they were getting there. The next person who tried to kidnap her was in for a surprise, not that Zelda wanted the opportunity to make good on that boast.

Instead of focusing on all the negative feelings of the past, she and Miranda roamed the halls and corridors of the palace, catching up on everything that had happened in their lives since the last time they had been able to visit. Her cousin had already heard about the challenge that had been presented to the King, but was more than surprised to learn the details about what Link was up to. As a member of the royal family, Miranda knew all of the legends, including the one about the first Princess Zelda.

"So, he just… ran off with her?" Miranda asked, somewhat in disbelief. "Did you tell him what Uncle Harkinian told us when we were children? You know… about Impa's son?"

"Impa told him that part, but he left anyway." Zelda replied as they neared the entrance to another chamber. "Sometimes I think that man is too brave for his own good… but speaking of Impa, there's something I need to tell you, and… maybe Agahnim can help?"

Relating the whole story about what the dark haired magician had done to the elderly servant, the Queen had expected her cousin to be concerned, but instead Miranda actually became excited to see the results of the spell. As her cousin rushed to open the chamber doors, Zelda was concerned that the now minuscule Impa would still be crying about her fate, but this was not the case when Miranda opened the doors.

No longer sitting on the dresser and crying about having been turned into a faerie, Impa was instead crying out with excitement as she now flew around the room, diving and turning around obstacles as if she had been _born_ with the wings that were now on her back. Around bedposts, and underneath cabinets, she flipped and spun, dipping down to where she almost touched the floor, before pulling up and then hovering right in front of the two ladies as they walked into the room.

"Can you believe it, Zelda? Can you believe it?!" Impa said in her now higher pitch voice. "Look how young and beautiful I am! I can fly, too!"

"She… doesn't appear to be cursed, Zelda." Miranda commented as the faerie resumed darting around the room, this time around each of the rafters. "In fact… I don't _ever_ remember seeing her this happy."

The Queen was about to say something, but was interrupted by a commotion that suddenly came from out in the hall. Leaving Impa to continue her flying around, Zelda and Miranda were met in the corridor by one of the servants, who seemed distressed. After a couple deep breaths, he bowed to her, and explained that there was a disturbance in the courtyard, and it had to be serious if the guards couldn't simply handle it themselves.

So the two of them followed the servant down the corridors and stairways of the North Palace, all the way down to the front entrance, where the doors opened to see what could easily be described as a disturbance. There were two strange warriors in the courtyard, each wearing dulled armor that was adorned with what looked like bones, almost giving them the appearance of skeletons. The helmets ruined this image though, being bulky and decorated with horns, and the warrior on the right was carrying a large sack on his back.

"We will not tell you again, vermin." One of the warriors warned, kicking a guard in the chest and knocking him down. "Bring us your Queen, or…

"The _Queen_ is right here." Zelda proclaimed as she and Miranda walked down the stairs, and onto the stone pathways of the courtyard. "What is the meaning of this?"

Backhanding another guard who got too close, the warrior with the sack responded to her by opening it, and dumping the contents onto the ground. Zelda gasped when she saw that it contained her husband's armor and weapons, and now the two warriors started laughing as they pointed their swords at her and Miranda. A small shield was attached to their arms, like the one Link carried, and now the guards were nervously taking a couple steps backwards from them.

"I bring you good news, your Highness." The warrior on the left said while laughing. "Façade was successful in defeating Rebonack, but…

"But he was no match for the great Boss Gooma." The other one continued. "Once Carock took the wizard away, your feeble husband crumbled under Gooma's might like a sickly child."

There was more laughing now as the warriors gave an obviously exaggerated account of how Façade begged this Gooma person for mercy, and cried like a girl, but Miranda didn't seem as concerned about this as she did with what had happened to Agahnim, seen by her quietly whispering the word _Carock_ as if it were something she were scared of. Now the warriors were laughing again as they explained how Gooma had ripped the armor from the King, and had him dragged through the mud, before suddenly becoming _very_ serious.

"Your husband has been defeated." The one on the left said coldly. "He is the prisoner of Boss Gooma, and we, the legendary _Parutamu Warriors_ , have come to accept your surrender."

"Get on your knees, Zelda, and toss your crown at our feet." The other one ordered, gesturing down with his sword. "Declare yourself the slave of Boss Gooma, and _beg_ his forgiveness for what you did to his cousin, the almighty Ganondorf."

"I have a better idea." The Queen replied quickly. "Tell me where Façade is, and then surrender, or the guards will _kill_ you where you stand."

"Zelda, something is wrong, here." Miranda whispered into her ear. "There's only two of them, why are they so confident?"

With the Queen's threat to back them up, the guards stopped backing away, and now even more guards could be seen appearing on top of the battlements and from other entrances of the palace. However, even though the two of them were hopelessly outnumbered, the Parutamu Warriors did not seem afraid. In fact, they started laughing again, even harder now before raising their swords above their heads, and then letting out an angry scream as they stabbed the blades into the stone pathway.

Zelda had seen Agahnim do something similar before, causing the ground to tremble as if an earthquake was happening, and just like with the wizard's spell, the Queen, Miranda, and all of the guards were knocked off their feet. After a couple seconds the ground stopped shaking, but at some point the sky had changed color, going from the light gray of distant rains, to a kind of greenish-yellow that just felt… wrong. Then it happened: Part of the stone walkway was busted out from underneath by what looked like… a skeletal fist?

It happened again, and again, and again, small pieces of the walkways throughout the courtyard being destroyed by skeletal fists… fists that were attached to skeletal arms… which were attached to complete skeletons that were quickly pulling themselves out from the ground. Each one was holding a sword in its other hand, with a mounted small shield like the two warriors were carrying, but other than that, they were simply naked skeletons… who immediately attacked the nearest guards.

Taken completely by surprise, the guards were starting to be overwhelmed by the skeletal warriors, especially since more of them were still pulling themselves out from the ground. This left the two Parutamu Warriors free to rush after the two ladies. Reacting just as she had been trained to do, the Queen took the boomerang out from the back of her belt, and tossed it at the one on the right, only to have him raise his leg up so that the weapon flew right past instead of hitting his knee.

The advance resumed immediately, with the weapon traveling for a short distance before turning around and coming back, but the warrior tilted his helmeted head to the side just before the boomerang wound have hit, leaving it free to end up back in Zelda's hand. More and more skeletons were coming up from the ground now, and it would only be a matter of seconds before the last of the retreating guards were overwhelmed, so Miranda pushed her toward the door while yelling for her to _run_ , and then from under the sleeve of her dress, her old hookshot was launched outward.

Moving his shield into the way at the last second, the spear on the end of the hookshot sunk into the metal instead of the warrior's chest, and then he pulled back as hard as he could, lifting Miranda off her feet. Instead of falling on her face, however, the Queen's cousin retracted the chain, causing her to fly forward, and allowing her to tackle the left warrior to the ground while the one on the right ran after Zelda.


	17. Chapter 17 A Painful Truth

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Seventeen: A Painful Truth**

Everything had become a blur after trudging through the swamp back to where Sing was waiting with his horse, and then it must have stopped raining, because the next thing Link knew, he felt the warmth of sunlight on his face. The ground was soft underneath him, shifting slightly when he opened his eyes to see that he was sitting on the white sands of a beautiful beach. A comfortable breeze was blowing through the leaves of nearby palm trees, the sun was turning orange as if getting ready to set… and he was not alone.

"I was starting to think you were going to sleep all day." Princess Zelda said as he sat up. "This is one of my favorite places on Koholint Island… the beach is so warm and soothing that I can't blame you for sleeping in, and… sometimes when I look off into the distance really, _really_ far… I think for a moment that I can almost see Hyrule."

"You'll see it in person soon enough, Princess." The Lord Sheriff replied, getting up and sitting down on the fallen tree next to her. "I completed the second challenge, and there _can't_ be many more, and then when you wake up I'll show you every inch of Hyrule… we can ride through every Province… just the two of us."

She smiled a little, but then just as quickly started to appear saddened by something, turning so that she was facing slightly away from him. Link knew what it was even without her speaking; the Princess had felt this kind of hope before when the other adventurers had tried to free her, only to have to remain imprisoned on this island when they failed. But _he_ was different, and in order to reassure the Princess of this the Lord Sheriff scooted closer to her, before taking both of her hands and kissing them.

"Zelda, I'm not going to fail like the others." He said when she looked at him with that same sorrow. "I swear to you that I will beat each challenge, and then when I bring back the Triforce of Wisdom, your curse will be over. You'll get to see Hyrule again, and we can be together, but… I hope that you won't be angry if I asked you not to have Sing executed."

"Link, I forgave Sing a _long_ time ago." The Princess explained, looking as if tears were starting to form in her eyes. "I know that my brother pushed her into it, but… I really _do_ hope that you are the one to free me from this curse, and I will be indebted to you _forever_ , I just… I don't want to lead you on, or… be dishonest with you in any way."

Just as Sing had predicted, Zelda went on to explain how every man who ever tried to break the curse had believed that she was in love with them. They had all been under the impression that after waking up, the Princess would simply run into their arms, and that they would ride off into the sunset together, but this was just not true. She knew that Link was a great hero, just like all the others who had been deemed worthy to try, and although she valued him as a treasured friend… she just couldn't be with him in the way he wanted.

"Is it because I was born a commoner?" He asked, unable to hide the sudden rush of negative feelings that were building up inside. "I'm the Lord Sheriff of Hyrule, I… I was knighted by King Harkinian, himself."

"No, Link, it isn't that." The Princess replied, trying to be as diplomatic as possible. "You're as brave and noble as any Prince, and I do care about you, I really do, but… Link, I'm just not in love with you."

With that, her composure was lost, and Zelda burst into tears, moving forward and hugging the Lord Sheriff tightly. She sobbed into his shoulder, begging him not to hate her, and pleading over and over again that she just didn't want to hurt him after everything he was going through. The Princess needed him, she knew that, and she was so terrified that the Lord Sheriff would abandon her after discovering the truth about her feelings, but all of the others had died believing that she loved them, and Zelda just couldn't watch that happen again.

"It's all right… everything's all right." Link answered, finding a measure of understanding beneath the anger and disappointment he was feeling. "I won't abandon you, Princess, I… understand why you feel like you do."

He reassured her that no matter what her feelings were, and keeping to himself how badly those feelings hurt him, that he would finish the quest and free her. It must have been awful to have all those people dying in order to try and save her, and the Lord Sheriff was _not_ going to be added to that list… but being rejected like that still hurt… it was like being stabbed in the heart, but Link just sat there… holding her while trying not to let her see that he was starting to cry as well.

Suddenly it was all gone; the island, the Princess, everything vanishing with the sound of crashing thunder as he opened his eyes. Outside the small room's window the rain was coming down even harder than before, but he could still see that the terrain of the village outside was far different than the area around Midoro Swamp. All of the buildings were made of white stone, and the ground was sand… well, mud at the moment.

The sky was dark, probably meaning that the sun was setting there as well as it had been on Zelda's island, and again he wasn't alone. Sing was still there… the dark haired magician giving the darkened room a flickering orange glow when she lit the lamp on the nearby table, revealing that they were inside of another rented room at some kind of inn. The bed was nicer than the last one, softer and larger, and unlike after what happened at Parappa Desert, Link was feeling better… physically.

"You sleep _a lot_ , you know that?" She asked, taking a seat at the small table. "I wasn't sure when you were going to wake up, so I brought up supper for us, if you're hungry."

Now that he was awake enough to smell the food, Link discovered that he was in fact really hungry, so he got out of bed, and took a seat at the table next to her. The floor of the room was laced with more of the white sand that he had seen outside, building up on his bare feet, but the food quickly made him forget about such things. It was a simple meal, but he felt like he hadn't eaten in days, and the sensation of no longer being hungry was helping him to keep his mind off what Princess Zelda had said to him.

"Something bothering you, Link?" Sing asked once they were finished eating. "You've completed two trials, something not a lot of others have managed, so you should be pleased… not looking like someone just kicked your dog."

Not wanting to open up to her about getting rejected by Zelda, the Lord Sheriff suggested that maybe the quest was starting to wear him down, but that he would be fine after a good night's sleep. The dark haired magician, however, seemed to see right through it, informing him that she knew about him getting to see the Princess on that island after each victory, as had all the others… but he was the first one who hadn't been completely refreshed and restored by whatever she said to them.

"Everyone else woke up talking about how they couldn't wait for her to wake up." The magician explained. "They had all these big plans about being with their love, and riding off into the sunset with her… couldn't have taken the smile off their faces with a gauntlet. Question is, why do _you_ look so disappointed?"

"She rejected me, all right?!" Link snapped, making her gasp when he slammed his fist down on the table. "Zelda told me that she didn't want to lead me on or lie to me, I… suppose like she did with the others. She doesn't have those kind of feelings for me, and I was an idiot to think she would in the first place."

Now that he was speaking about what happened, and had several minutes to think it over, the very notion that the sleeping Princess Zelda would immediately be in love with him was ridiculous. They had only met in some kind of _dream island_ , and she had bene through this with _who even knew_ how many others before him. Each one of them had probably thought the same thing he had, and as it all made more sense, the Lord Sheriff felt like even more of a fool, getting up from the table and walking back over to sit on the bed.

"I'm still going to finish the quest, so don't worry." He continued. "Oh, and she said that she doesn't blame you for what happened any more… am I really that big of an idiot?"

"Link, you're a _man_ , not an idiot." The dark haired magician replied, getting up from the table. "You saw a beautiful woman in distress, and you naturally thought that she would fall for you when you saved her… I'm just glad she finally stopped letting them think that."

Starting to turn red from embarrassment, the Lord Sheriff buried his face in his hands, now feeling incredibly jealous of how easy both Façade and Agahnim had made it look to find their brides, but these thoughts were interrupted when the bed moved slightly from Sing sitting down next to him. As always, she was far closer than acquaintances should have been, let alone enemies or whatever they were at this point, but that didn't stop her from leaning her head on his shoulder.

"Sing, why are you always acting like this with me?" The Lord Sheriff asked, turning his head to look at her. "Always being so close, and touching, and all."

"Hmm, maybe you _are_ an idiot." The magician replied with a slight laugh. "It's because I like you, Link, regardless of this curse and how we are technically adversaries… you dove on top of me during the sandstorm to keep me safe… and I liked it."

Sing laughed again after admitting that she was glad for the sleeping Princess's rejection, and she was starting to ask if he thought there was any chance of him liking her as well, but she didn't get the chance to finish the question. The dark haired magician was incredibly beautiful, and up until right then, the Lord Sheriff had felt guilty about his desire for her since he had been seeking the heart of Princess Zelda… which was not an issue any longer.

Interrupting her words by turning his body toward her, and then putting his hands on her cheeks, Link brought his lips to hers. Her response was immediate; closing her eyes and returning the kiss, which lasted for a lot longer than either of them had probably imagined. The dark haired magician then snapped her fingers, extinguishing the lantern as the storm continued outside.


	18. Chapter 18 Breaking the Siege

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Eighteen: Breaking the Siege**

While Miranda wrestled with the other Parutamu Warrior, and the increasingly overwhelmed guards tried to fight off their summoned enemies, Zelda was forced to back away from the remaining Parutamu. Throwing her boomerang while moving toward the palace doors, her pursuer was able to dodge it again, as well as when the weapon came back from behind, but the distraction gave the Queen enough time to get back inside before he could catch her.

"What are you all still doing in here?" She asked upon seeing the interior guards still at their posts. "The palace is being invaded, go help the exterior guards."

Without hesitation the guards around her drew their swords, rushing toward the still open doors, only to be met by the Parutamu. The helmeted warrior swung his sword, putting a long gash across the first guard's stomach before he could react, and after kicking the wounded man out of the way, he attacked the next one as well. Whoever these Parutamu Warriors were, they were certainly skilled with a blade, since one at a time, the guards were defeated by him.

Throwing her boomerang just as the last guard in the way was cleaved nearly in half, her pursuer grunted in surprise as the flying weapon struck him right in the forehead. The helmet protected him, and it only took him a moment to recover, but this was long enough for the boomerang to return to the Queen's hand so that she could throw it again. This time, however, she didn't throw it at the Parutamu, but upward toward the ropes that held the chandeliers in place.

Her pursuer had just shaken off the surprise blow, when he cried out in shock after the flying weapon had broken the rope, causing the heavy wooden light fixture to come crashing down on his head. Without hesitation, the Queen tossed her boomerang again, and again, and again, striking her pursuer's helmet with a repeated clank-clank-clank, all of which he was unable to do anything about.

"Call off those monsters you summoned." Zelda ordered, stepping closer and holding the weapon ready. "Drop your weapon now, and order your partner to do the same, and I give you my word that the punishment for this attack will only be banishment from Hyrule."

The Parutamu was silent for a moment as if considering her proposal, but then he started laughing. His laughter got louder and more hysterical to the point where the Queen started to think that he had lost his mind, but then the laughter stopped… replaced with an angry roar as her pursuer got to his feet, tossing the chandelier away as if it were far lighter than it was. With a loud _crash_ , the fixture was broken, so Zelda threw her boomerang again… only to gasp when he caught it in his hand.

"Zelda, you are in no position to make demands." The Parutamu replied with an irritated tone. "You are already a slave of the great Boss Gooma, and now I shall put you in your place."

Expecting him to simply discard the weapon, the Queen was shocked when he tossed it back at her, causing Zelda's vision to go white for a moment as it struck her right between the eyes with a hard whack. She must have been knocked off her feet, because when her vision came back into focus, she was lying on the floor, and her pursuer was standing over her… with his sword thrusting downward.

Instinctively managing to move just enough so that the blade stabbed into the floor instead of her chest, the Queen brought her foot up as hard as she could into her pursuer's groin, causing him to groan while stumbling backwards. No, the attack wasn't very effective, but it did give Zelda the chance to get halfway to her feet before scrambling up the stairs. He continued after her once again, making her cry out when he grabbed her by the hair just as she reached the top of the curved staircase, and now very painfully pulling her head backwards while swinging the blade.

This move was clearly meant to kill her; the blade coming right toward the Queen's throat while she was bent backwards into a helpless position, but then her foot slipped out from under her. Falling backwards enough to avoid having her throat cut, there was a ripping sound as the sword sliced through the majority of her long brown hair instead… both freeing her from the Parutamu's grip… and making him lose his balance.

Flailing his arms to find something to catch himself on, and even dropping his sword in order to catch hold of the handrail, Zelda's pursuer missed his chance. Performing a kind of backwards roll, there was a lot of crashing and banging as he tumbled all the way down the curved staircase, making an even louder _crash_ when he finally reached the floor at the bottom. Fortunately for him, the armor and helmet saved him from a lot of the damage… but not from the Queen.

While her pursuer was falling, Zelda had picked up his fallen sword, and ran back down the stairs after him, raising the weapon, and swinging it just as he was getting up. The finely sharpened blade tore into the facemask part of the Parutamu's helmet, causing him to cry out in pain while a small spray of blood shot out, and then he let out a yelp as the Queen swung the blade a second time, leaving a gash across the front of his legs.

Her pursuer stumbled sideways, falling to his knees against a nearby pillar that he immediately started using to get back up, but Zelda stopped him by swinging the sword yet again, this time making the Parutamu scream when his left hand was completely severed. Now collapsing to the floor, and ending up on his back, the warrior started to say something, but never got the chance.

By this point the Queen had seen enough of this warrior to last her a lifetime, so she turned the sword downward, raised it up as high as she could, and stabbed the blade down into his chest so hard that there was a clink when it struck the floor beneath him after going all the way through his body. Not satisfied with this, she put her foot on his stomach for leverage in removing the blade, only to stab him again… and again… and again…

The uncontrollable anger that she was feeling was now starting to mix with the painful memories that she still had from being Ganondorf's prisoner for all that time, and instead of seeing the Parutamu Warrior, all Zelda could see was her former captor. Again and again she struck him with the blade, stabbing and slashing while letting out a scream of both rage and fear, causing sprays of blood to splatter across both the nearby walls and herself, but the Queen kept going until her arms became too tired to hold the weapon any longer.

When her mind finally cleared and she saw the dismembered, almost unrecognizable remains of her pursuer, Zelda couldn't help vomiting where she stood, before stumbling back into the wall, and slowly sinking to the floor. She felt awful, and exhausted, but the strangest part was that she could no longer hear the battle going on outside. Had the guards somehow prevailed, she wondered? Or had they lost… and what about Miranda?

Her answer came when a shadow approached the open door from outside, and at first Zelda was afraid when she saw the other Parutamu walk into the palace, but he wasn't alone. Miranda was directly behind him; her clothes torn, hair all down in her face, nose bleeding, and a bruise forming around her eye. However, the chain from her hook shot was wrapped around the warrior's neck and wrists.

"You had best hope that your friend hasn't hurt my cousin." Miranda warned, choking her prisoner by pulling back on the chain. "Because if he has even… what in the _hell_ happened in here?"

The two of them both stopped, taking a moment to look down at what remained of the first Parutamu, and then at Zelda, who was still sitting against the wall with the blood covered sword nearby. The good news was that with both of the warriors being either captured or killed, the minions they had summoned simply vanished, meaning that the siege of the North Palace was over.

The Queen was not exactly in the right frame of mind to give commands at the moment, so Miranda instructed the remaining guards to take the remaining Parutamu down to the dungeon. He was to be stripped of all armor and possessions, before being chained up as uncomfortably as possible, and given ten lashes by every single guard who had survived the attack. The guards seemed pleased with this, and it guaranteed that the prisoner wouldn't cause any trouble until she was ready to question him.

"Zelda, are you all right?" Miranda asked, kneeling down with her once they were alone. "Did he… what happened to your hair?"

Now bringing up her hand to touch it for the first time since almost getting her head sliced off, the Queen realized just how much of her previously long hair that had been lost. It now didn't even reach her shoulders, and now the room didn't feel as warm as it had before, but Zelda reassured her cousin that she was all right, even though the memories of Ganondorf had not quite faded away yet.

"Well, no point in sitting here any longer." Miranda continued, helping the Queen to her feet. "I think a nice, hot bath is in order before I make our newest prisoner scream out every secret he's _ever_ known… you know… with your hair like that, you almost look like a different person."

A bath _did_ sound nice right about now, and Zelda had no interest in whatever her cousin was planning on doing with the remaining Parutamu down in the dungeon, so long as she was able to find out what happened to Façade and Agahnim. Whoever this _Boss Gooma_ that the Parutamu had mentioned was, he was going to pay _dearly_ if anything happened to either of their husbands.

"I _knew_ that Façade shouldn't have gone to King's Cross." She said as they slowly walked up the stairs. "What are we going to do, Miranda?"

"I'm not sure just yet." Her cousin replied, wiping the blood from her nose. "But with Link still out on his quest… it might be up to _us_ to save them."


	19. Chapter 19 Pillar Island

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Nineteen: Pillar Island**

The rain was finally starting to let up, but the morning sky was still a solid mass of gray clouds when the sun started to rise, leaving the white sands of _Mido Port_ more like an ivory mud. Of course the morning was almost over by the time that Link and Sing left the inn, and the Lord Sheriff had conflicting emotions as the two of them walked toward the pier, holding hands like a couple.

Neither of them had said anything to each other since waking up, aside from the dark haired magician telling him that they needed to take a ship to _Pillar Island_ … a destination that surprised him to be holding one of the trials, since it was a popular tourist attraction. People came from all over Hyrule to climb the carved stairs that circled the island's whole mountain several times on the way up to the historic plateau, where an almost completely intact fortress from the days of Spectacle Rock was still standing.

All of that was common knowledge, though, and even as half of Link's mind was wondering what kind of a challenge could remain hidden in such a heavily traveled place, the rest of his mind was enthralled again when the wind kicked up, blowing some of Sing's long hair across his face. There was no way to deny that he was falling in love with her; this beautiful, powerful magician, who was responsible for cursing the original Princess Zelda hundreds of years ago… of course, none of her crimes had mattered to him last night.

The Lord Sheriff had forgotten for a while that his traveling companion had not only cursed the royal family, but also sealed the Triforce of Courage away, and had countless brave young man of the Kingdom to their deaths with the same trials that had nearly claimed his own life as well. So how was he supposed to explain to the King and Queen that he was having an affair with her?

Leaving his horse at the local stables, where they had charged a surprisingly fair price to take care of it while they went to the island, the two of them boarded the ship, walking up the gangplank with dozens of other travelers. There were couples there of all ages, some of them with children, again making the Lord Sheriff nervous about what was going to happen once they all got to the island… was there something up on top of the plateau that he was supposed to activate, like back in Parappa Palace?

"Excuse me?" A woman asked after they were onboard. "Are you the Lord Sheriff? The one who saved the Queen from Ganondorf? Oh, is this your wife?"

"We're not married, no." Sing answered for him after he stuttered at the last part, moving closer and putting her arms around him. "I think he's too scared to ask me… poor Link, he's always been so shy around girls… he starts blushing if anyone even finds out that he _kissed_ me."

Well, so much for the dark haired magician remaining silent from last night, and of course, Link's face started to turn red, mostly out of humiliation and surprise about what Sing was making up about him. Any protests about this would have just added credit to her story about him being scared of women, so he was forced to stay silent while the two women giggled about it, while the other woman assured Sing that _her husband_ didn't have that problem. By the time the conversation between them had ended, the gangplank had been pulled back onto the ship, and they were on their way to the island, leaving the two of them mostly alone as everyone gathered into their own groups.

"Do you _have_ to humiliate me like that all the time?" Link asked quietly. "Now that woman thinks that I'm afraid of, well… women."

"Well, then you'll have to show her differently, won't you?" Sing replied, starting to smile as she moved around in front of him. "Kiss me, Link."

He did, putting his arms around her as well, and hearing a few people around them reacting for a moment until they were done… but as wonderful as being with her made him feel, there was still the matter of what was going to happen on the island. So he quietly asked the dark haired magician about whether or not all these people were in danger from the challenge he was about to face, and she replied that _she wasn't sure_.

"You're not sure?" The Lord Sheriff asked in disbelief. "How are you not sure?"

"This island was _abandoned_ last time I was there, all right?" She replied. "No one had set foot on the place since Spectacle Rock was built, and suddenly everyone in Hyrule wants to take their husbands there to what… climb a bunch of stairs and see an old fort? I can think of _so_ many other things I'd rather be doing with a man."

One thing that made Link feel a little bit better about her rantings was when the dark haired magician revealed that they were not going up to the plateau with all of the others. Instead, once the ship docked about an hour later, the two of them snuck away from the rest of the group that headed for the stairs, moving around to a narrow path that skirted around the side of the island. The walking surface was incredibly narrow, meaning that the two of them had to keep their backs against the rock wall, slowly sidestepping as the path curved upward high enough to where they could not climb back up if they fell down into the ocean.

Since they had to be so careful, the trip across the path's edge, which wasn't really that far at all, took a long time, but after rounding the side of the mountain, the Lord Sheriff was surprised to find that the path ended at the mouth of a cave. About twice as tall as a man, and about three times as wide, the mouth was hidden in the surrounding stone so well that only someone who used the narrow path would have found it, and there was no light coming from inside.

"Link, I have to warn you." Sing said, grabbing his arm when he started inside. "I'm not allowed to tell you how many challenges are left, but no one has _ever_ survived the test that awaits in this cave."

That statement didn't exactly fill him with confidence, but with as concerned for him as the dark haired magician looked, maybe there was another way out of this. So he kissed her, holding Sing tightly for several seconds, and then asking her once again to simply end the curse and be done with it. However, just as she had explained to him before, the dark haired magician was just as trapped by the curse as Princess Zelda was, and therefore couldn't simply end it… no matter how she felt about him.

"Then it looks like I have no choice." Link said, turning from her and drawing his silver sword. "Don't worry, Sing, I'll be back soon."

If only he had the confidence that he was portraying, this latest challenge might have been simple, but in honesty, the Lord Sheriff was scared. Fighting that horse thing in the Parappa ruins had been fiercely difficult, as had figuring out what to do in the old Midoro drainage cisterns, meaning that whatever was waiting for him inside the cave was sure to be even _more_ challenging. Carefully stepping through into the hidden cave, he had to use his sword to feel around for obstacles, because this cave was _dark_.

So far it appeared to be only a straight path with no obstructions aside from a random rock sticking out of the floor, but after he had traveled for a good distance around a few turns, the wall that he was tabbing with the blade seemed to just vanish. The floor was still there, but none of the walls or ceiling were present, and he wasn't sure why until a light began to appear. It was subtle at first, only enough for him to see the outline of the nearby walls and path ahead… no, not a path… a stone bridge across a deep, dark chasm.

Wait, this wasn't just a chasm, Link discovered as the light grew brighter… red and orange light that was coming from below. This room was a vast, open chamber, with a stone bridge being the only way to cross a massive river of magma that was flowing at the bottom. Something was strange about the bridge, though; there were shadows strewn across it, but not ordinary ones… these were shaped like people, strewn about the length of the bridge, but with no actual people attached to them, as if permanently burned into the stone.

" _Hello there_." A deep and powerful, yet polite voice said from nowhere. " _And who might you be_?"

"I… I am Link, Lord Sheriff of Hyrule." He answered while looking around for the source of the voice. "I have come to face this trial in order to reclaim the Triforce of Courage, and break the curse on Princess Zelda."

The voice chuckled a bit in response, before suggesting that he leave the cave and never return, and suggesting that he instead simply visit the fortress on top of the island's plateau, as the view was quite lovely this time of year. With a final comment that it was all back the way he came, the voice started to fade away, chuckling again while the light being given off by the river of magma started to dim back down as well.

"I am here to break the curse and save the Kingdom!" Link yelled, holding up his sword. "Now come out and face me!"

The dimming of the light stopped, and then it began to intensify once again, growing even brighter than it had been at its previous height, raising the temperature of the chamber until the Lord Sheriff started to sweat. Then there was movement; something from below, a shadow at first, but then coming into view as it rose up from underneath the bridge… and up… and up… and still up until its head nearly touched the chamber's roof. It was a serpent, bigger than anything Link had ever seen in his life, with glowing yellow eyes and smoke coming from its mouth, while its long neck stretched back down below the bridge until it couldn't be seen against the magma's light.

" _Hmmm, rude and impetuous like all the others_." The serpent said, smoke and flame coming from its mouth as it spoke. " _Well, Link, Lord Sheriff of Hyrule, I am Barba, and this is my domain in which you now stand_."


	20. Chapter 20 The Prisoners

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Twenty: The Prisoners**

 _Splash!_ The sudden shock of receiving a face full of cold water was enough to pull King Façade back to consciousness, and now the disoriented man coughed as he looked all around at his surroundings. A cold breeze was moving through the room, although the temperature might have been because he was wet, and the wall-mounted torches gave off just enough flickering orange light for him to see that the walls and floor were made of stone.

A wall made of metal bars was in front of him, but the door was open to provide a possible means of escape… if he hadn't been tied up, that is. Strung up so that he could barely touch the floor with his toes, the King's wrists were stretched above his head, secured with a rope that was fastened somewhere on the ceiling. No windows were in sight, making it impossible for Façade to tell if it was night or day, and the very last detail of his situation was that he was not alone.

"Ah, good morning, _your Lowness_." The deep voice of Boss Gooma said as he set the now empty bucket down. "What do you think of my dungeon, hmm? I'm told that it has the _best_ accommodations in all Hyrule."

"What have you done with Agahnim?" The King replied after noticing that the wizard was nowhere in sight. "Answer me, or I swear that…

The only answer that Façade received was a strong backhand from his captor, striking him across the face with enough force that would have thrown him backwards, if not for being anchored by the rope above his head. Instead, the King simply swung back, returning to the original position just in time to be slugged in the stomach by Gooma's powerful fist. His captor seemed amused by this, and remarked that Façade had more important things to worry about than his _pet wizard_.

"You know, you don't seem strong _at all_ , Façade." Gooma continued, stopping him from swinging. "Agahnim must have helped you cheat against Rebonack, and without his rescue, you certainly wouldn't have stood a chance against _me_ … or Ganondorf. But you you're alone, aren't you? Nothing but a frightened child without all that _magic_ to save you, isn't that right?"

"That depends, Gooma." The King answered. "Are you talking about _me_ … or yourself? Agahnim beat you without using _any_ magic at all, and if Carock hadn't come to your rescue, you would have… oh that's right, you _did_ swear fealty to me, didn't you? Face down in the mud, begging for mercy so that he wouldn't break your arm… that oath makes you a traitor now, doesn't it?"

Gritting his teeth, and his face turning red, Gooma threw a wild punch, but the King avoided it by tilting his head out of the way. Façade then raised his legs up and kicked his captor in the face with both feet while he was off balance, causing Gooma to stumble back a step… right into the empty bucket. Tripping over it, his captor cried out as he fell on his back, breaking the bucket, and sending more of those Wosu creatures running down the corridor to assist him.

"Get off me, I'm fine!" Gooma yelled, pushing them back and then adjusting his helmet after getting to his feet. "Trying to resist me is pointless, Façade; I've already sent your possessions and horse back to your Queen, with demands that she surrender the throne to if she _ever_ wants to see you alive again."

His captor's rant went on with him wondering if Zelda would get on her knees when she begged for her husband's life, and exactly what she would offer to him _aside_ from the throne in order to make sure that Façade was safe. Gooma and the Wosu were laughing together now, taking turns making rather degrading suggestions as to what the Queen would offer them, but the King wasn't worried just yet. His wife was a strong woman who had dealt with creatures far worse than Gooma, and besides… Miranda was there with her.

"You can go ahead and laugh all you want, Gooma." Façade said, stopping the laughter. "You're half-right; my wife _will_ respond to your demands… but I _promise_ you that you won't like the result. You'll be back on your knees in front of me again before you know it, because you will never be _half_ the warrior that Ganondorf was, and _he_ lost to us."

For a moment it looked like Gooma was going to say something, but then he stopped, tried again, but stopped as if he couldn't think of anything. So instead he pulled back his arm and punched Façade in the stomach hard enough to make the King vomit, only to until his wrists and instruct the Wosu guards to hold him while some of the others were sent to retrieve a much larger bucket.

About a minute later they returned, working together to drag a _very_ large container across the stone floor. It was filled to the top with water, and as soon as it had been pushed into the cell, Gooma grabbed the King by the hair and shoved his head underwater. Several seconds went by before he was pulled back up, but he was only able to get a short gasp of air before being shoved back under again.

"You arrogant little _brat_!" Gooma yelled, pulling him up again. "Now _you_ will swear fealty to _me_! Cry out that you are my slave, and beg me for mercy, or I'll make you _wish_ that I held you under until you drown! Say it!"

Instead of saying anything, Façade spat out the water he was holding in his mouth, right into his captor's face. Some of it went into Gooma's mouth, making him cough a bit himself, but then he shoved the King's head back under the water, this time for much longer than before. However, Façade was not the only prisoner who was having a rough time, since meanwhile, the surviving Parutamu Warrior had been enjoying the sort of accommodations that the North Palace's dungeons had to offer… _had_ being the operative word.

Queen Zelda had to admit that, after the agonized shrieks that she had heard coming from the dungeon, she was a bit nervous to walk into the bathing room where her cousin had gone after the screams had stopped after several hours. Miranda's dress had blood all over it, as did her expensive shoes, and as for the Lady herself, she appeared to be relaxing inside the tub full of water so hot that steam was forming.

"Good news, Zelda, I found out what they did with your husband." Miranda said, casually scrubbing more blood from under her fingernails. "Façade is being held in an underground fortress underneath a town called _Old Kasuto_ … I thought the Parutamu would be tough, but he gave up his master in less than five minutes."

The Queen was glad to hear that her husband was still alive, although at the same time disturbed to find out that the information had been gained in minutes, while the screams that had come from the dungeon had gone on for a _very_ long time after that. The answer was that while the location of the King had been found quickly, the Parutamu had claimed to know nothing of what happened to Agahnim.

"He told me that someone named _Carock_ took him away." Miranda continued, now getting the last of the blood off. "But he said he didn't know where he took him or why, since Carock doesn't work for Gooma, and he _kept_ claiming that… until he died."

"Miranda, Agahnim is still alive, I'm sure of it." Zelda said, kneeling by the tub and taking her cousin's hands. "Oh, if only Link was back from his quest with that horrible woman… what are we going to do?"

Her cousin's answer surprised her, although it shouldn't have, being that Miranda had been part of the siege that defeated Ganondorf. She herself, under her old guise as Blind the Thief, would go to Old Kasuto, and rescue Façade from this Gooma person. After that, she would give him the same gentle treatment that the Parutamu Warrior had received, resulting with the King and herself going to rescue Agahnim as well.

"You can't go by _yourself_ , Miranda." The Queen urged. Wait until Link gets back, or we can send word for him to forget the quest and return to the palace at once. You don't know what kind of other forces or monsters that Gooma has at his disposal, so going there alone would be _suicide_."

But Miranda wasn't hearing it; believing that with her old magic candle, master key, and hookshot weapon that she was unstoppable, her plan was to gather her things, get a little rest, and then head out at sundown. Queen or not, Zelda didn't have the skills nor the guards required to keep her cousin there against her will, so the only other solution that she could think of was to accompany Miranda, herself.

"Link taught me how to use that boomerang." The Queen argued after the initial protests. "You've been teaching me how to defend myself for the last three years, and you even said, now that my hair is so short I look like a completely different person."

"Zelda, it takes more than weapons and a mask to do what I do… what Link, Agahnim, and your husband do. We've all had _years_ of experience, and the men don't like to mention this part, but we almost got ourselves killed so many times trying to rescue you. Hell, a creature called _Vire_ would have sucked out all my blood if Agahnim hadn't gotten there in time."

Now it was Zelda's turn to be the one not listening; warning her cousin that if she headed for Old Kasuto alone, that the Queen would be following close behind no matter what she said. Even if she tried to lose her, which would have probably been easy, Zelda knew where Old Kasuto was, so there was really no way of stopping her. Eventually her cousin caved in, and agreed to let her come and help, but only if she agreed to do exactly as Miranda sad the whole time, and for God's sake let her do the talking.

"Oh, and we're not riding out." Miranda added. "Do me a favor, Zelda, go to my room, open my largest bag, and feel for the hidden compartment on the side."

Not sure what she wanted from the bag, the Queen agreed, and headed out into the corridor. Miranda's room was only a short distance away, and the bag was easy to find, as was the hidden compartment, but only since she was looking for it. There was something solid inside, and after Zelda figured out how to open it, she gasped at what was taken out. It was Ganondorf's old traveling recorder, somehow pieced back together, and maybe even able to work.


	21. Chapter 21 The Smart choice

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Twenty One: The Smart Choice**

Link had come up against some pretty tough creatures over the course of his life, but none of them were even _close_ to the gigantic and imposing form of Barba. This massive serpent chuckled a bit, more smoke and puffs of flame coming from its nose and mouth, while its whole body moved, the base still not visible from the glow of the magma down below. Then it blew out a short breath from its nose, sending down a glob of flame so powerful that a whole section of the stone bridge was engulfed in flames.

"Do you _really_ think that you can cross _my_ bridge?" The serpent asked, its words echoing around the cavern. "See those shadows toward the center? Each one was made from a fool who thought the same; _I'm on an important quest to save Princess Zelda, I'm the chosen one, I can't be defeated_ … why don't you ask the _shadows_ how well that way of thinking worked?"

"Barba, listen to me!" The Lord Sheriff shouted. "This curse has gone on for long enough… I don't know where your loyalties lie, but you have to understand that if I get the Triforce of Courage and save Zelda, then… then things can only get better for all of us, you included!"

The serpent just looked down at him for a second, before blowing out another glob of flame that set the bridge on fire, this time closer so that Link had to step back from the heat. Fine, maybe Barba wasn't in the mood to negotiate… but maybe this creature also didn't believe that anyone could stand up to it. Taking the boomerang from his belt, the Lord Sheriff waited until the flames died down, before stepping out and throwing the weapon.

Spinning through the air as it flew toward its target, the boomerang was on a direct course for the serpent's eye… until Barba opened its mouth and caught the weapon in its teeth. With an effortless crunch, the serpent's powerful jaws broke the boomerang into a dozen pieces that fell down toward the magma. Well, that was… disheartening, the Lord Sheriff thought as Barba started laughing again, but wait… maybe he could run across the bridge while it was too busy laughing to notice him.

Waiting until the serpent had thrown its head back in laughter, Link ran for it; sprinting with all of his speed, and running across the bridge faster than he had ever ran before. Of course, he hadn't realized just how long the stone bridge really was, and the Lord Sheriff was getting out of breath by the time he had reached the halfway point. The good news was that he was suddenly given an opportunity to stop running and catch his breath, but the bad news was because the break was provided by Barba.

Looking down at him, and then breathing a glob of flame from each nostril, Link found himself completely surrounded by flames on both sides, leaving only a space of a few meters for him to stand on… a place where all of the burned shadows permanently engraved onto the stone. There was nowhere to run, and now the serpent was slowly bending downward so that its massive snout was only a couple feet away from the Lord Sheriff, making him sweat profusely from the heat coming out.

"Looks like you've gone and trapped yourself, _hero_." Barba said, Link's whole body completely reflected in each of its eyes. "There is no way for you to win, and if you attack me, then your form will remain permanently added to the bridge, just like every _idiot_ that came before you."

The fire that the serpent produced felt like it was going to roast him alive, even though it wasn't touching him, and the thick scales that covered Barba's body looked touch enough to protect the creature from any attack. With his sword still sheathed because of the attempt to run, the only means of defending himself that the Lord Sheriff had was the small shield on his forearm, but… but he had to pass the trial and get the Triforce, he just _had_ to.

"Barba, _please_." Link pleaded. "The whole _Kingdom_ is depending on me, and if you help me break this curse, I'll make sure that no one _ever_ disturbs your rest again."

"Silence." The serpent ordered. "Your situation is hopeless, boy… I am bigger, stronger, faster, and more intelligent than you could ever _dream_ of becoming. Every single hero that Sing has brought here has died because they were too _ignorant_ to make the smart choice. What is the smart choice, you ask?"

Suddenly the flames behind him went out, and although the temperature drop felt wonderful, it didn't take a genius to figure out what this so called _smart choice_ was. There was no way to get through the flames that blocked his goal, let alone fight off Barba without getting melted where he stood, and now the serpent wanted him to give up. But how could he? How could Link, the Lord Sheriff of all Hyrule, simply give up and return home a failure?

"Make the smart choice and walk away, boy." Barba continued as Link looked at the exit. "There is no shame in realizing that a situation is hopeless, and a few moments of humility is worth it so that you can live another day, is it not? I know you're thinking about using your blade to attack my eyes… as did all the others at this point… but out of a _dozen_ charred heroes… I still have _both_ eyes."

Try as he might to think of a way out of this, nothing was coming to mind, and the curse would remain in place if he got himself killed, just as it would if he gave up. He wanted to fight this monster just like he had fought Ganondorf, and return to the North Palace a hero once again… but there was nothing he could do. So as much as it violated every instinct in his body, the Lord Sheriff took another look into Barba's eyes… and then turned away.

Part of him felt like a coward, turning tail and retreating from this monster, but another part knew that it was the only way for him to survive. So he hung his head, walking back to the start of the bridge, and half expecting the serpent to burn him alive… but this didn't happen. True to its word, Barba did not interfere with Link's retreat, and the cave grew cold by the time that he had reached the cavern exit.

How was he going to face Façade and Zelda? The Lord Sheriff wondered as he moved back through the cave toward the surface of Pillar Island. How was he going to face Agahnim or Miranda, now that he had been scared off by a giant serpent, and mostly… how was he going to face Sing? The dark haired magician had bene so hopeful that he would be the one to succeed where everyone else had failed, and… and now he was about to find out her reaction, since she was waiting for him just inside the mouth of the cave.

"Sing… I'm sorry." He said, fighting back a tear from the shame that he was feeling. "I couldn't… Barba, he… there was no way…

"Link… you're alive?" She asked in a bewildered tone, taking a step toward him. "You did it? Oh my God, you did it!"

Instead of being angry or disappointed in him, Sing ran toward him with tears of her own starting to run down her cheeks as she leapt into his arms. Giving him a big kiss and then hugging him incredibly tight, she just kept repeating that _he did it_ , even when she started to cry into his shoulder. But he hadn't done it… the Lord Sheriff had failed, retreating from the serpent like a coward, and…

"No, Link, no you didn't fail." She explained, kissing him on the cheek. "Barba is older and more powerful than anything in this world… nothing can beat him, don't you see? The test was for you to have enough wisdom to realize you were outmatched, instead of getting yourself killed. You did it, Link, you did it!"

Hugging her back, the Lord Sheriff was confused by this trial, that is until he started thinking about the others that he had faced. In the ruins of Parappa Palace, he had won a duel against that horse monster, beneath Midoro Swamp he had stayed the course instead of taking a shortcut when confronted by the ghosts, and now he was smart enough to retreat from Barba. These trials had tested him in the areas of power, courage… and now wisdom… just like the three Triforces.

Just like when the other trials had ended, there was a rumbling in the ground as if something was changing, but now that his power, courage, and wisdom had all been tested, was that it? Was the curse ready to be broken? Sing had told him that the Triforce of Courage was hidden within the ruins of a Great Palace located at a place called Death Valley, so did he just have to walk inside and take it?

"No, Link, it won't be that easy." The dark haired magician explained as he held her. "My curse made Zelda sleep and created the barrier around the Great Palace, but I didn't hide the Triforce away, the old King of Hyrule did. I can now take you to the palace, and you'll be able to get inside, but I honestly have no idea what's in there."

"Whatever it is, I'll face it." The Lord Sheriff replied, feeling a surge of hopeful energy that he hadn't experienced since facing Ganondorf. "I'm going to get the Triforce of Courage and then free both you and Princess Zelda from the curse."

Sing smiled before they kissed again, even more passionately and for longer than before, and then the dark haired magician took the recorder from the pocket of her dress. From what she knew, magic was the only way for anyone to enter Death Valley, at least without getting killed within a minute of arrival, but even though Link as eager to go, she put the device back into her pocket.

"No, Link, not yet." She explained. "We're heading back into town, and tonight you rest and get your strength back. Tomorrow morning we'll head for Death Valley, and I just hope… I just hope that you're ready."


	22. Chapter 22 Old Kasuto

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Twenty Two: Old Kasuto**

"Oh, I'm still dizzy." Zelda said, stumbling a bit. "I don't think I'll ever get used to traveling with one of those."

"Zelda, be quiet." Miranda whispered harshly, then pulling on her arm. "Get down before someone sees us."

Preparations for the mission to rescue King Façade from Boss Gooma at Old Kasuto had not taken as long as Miranda had thought, especially since her cousin had already possessed an outfit that would serve as a pretty convincing disguise, especially now that most of her hair had been chopped off. The Queen looked like one of those desert warriors from Ganondorf's original tribe, especially when she had the bandana and face wrap on, but Miranda was not so impressed after finding out that she had made the outfit to fulfill one of her husband's fantasies.

"This looks like the place, all right." Miranda observed, now in her old guise of Blind the Master Thief. "I see a lot of creatures like that Parutamu described, but… a lot of criminal types as well, probably mercenaries."

The presence of mercenaries being hired was a blessing, since it would allow the two women to move around the village of Old Kasuto without drawing attention to themselves, and it was even better than they had arrived just as the sun was finishing setting. The village itself looked like it had been abandoned for a long time before being occupied by Gooma, judging by the rotting boards on the houses, and the how the village sign was hanging by a single nail, but how were they going to find the entrance to this underground fortress?

Having taken a position behind a large bush a good distance away from where some of those Wosu creatures were lighting torches and camp fires, Miranda was trying her best to get the lay of the land, but since the entrance to the underground area wasn't likely to be outside, the two of them were going to have to search the buildings. They were armed; Zelda carrying her boomerang and a wooden bow that she had taken from the armory before they left, while the resurfaced Master Thief had broken out her old tools for this job.

A hookshot weapon up her sleeve, a magical candle underneath her cloak, her old strengthening bracelet locked onto her arm, and the master key to all Hyrule being used to hold her hair up under the hood… it had been a few years since she had stepped into the old lifestyle that she had before meeting Agahnim, but becoming Blind again felt like the most natural thing in the world for her… contrasting how nervous and uncomfortable her cousin looked.

"And what have we here?" A male voice loudly announced as his shadow fell over them in the light of the rising moon. "A couple of…

Making a fist, and throwing it sideways without even looking, Miranda stopped the mercenary's words by punching him in the groin with the help of her special bracelet. He dropped his sword while stumbling away from the bush, falling to his hands and knees in the center of the road in plain view of all… and the thief followed him. Instead of keeping with the stealthy approach like she and the Queen had planned, Miranda punched him in the side of the head, while demanding to know who taught him how to treat a lady, and then kicking him in the stomach so that he fell back down.

"Give me your arm, you feeble little boy." The thief continued, making him scream when she twisted it around behind his back. "Now empty your pockets! Do it with your other hand, or I swear I'll break this one!"

By this time a crowd of creatures and more mercenaries had gathered to watch the spectacle, some commenting on the newcomer's strength, while others laughed at their comrade who was taking all of his possessions out of his pockets and throwing it at her feet. A few seconds later the mercenary swore that he had given her everything, screaming it several times to the laughter of the others… and then shrieking like a wounded animal when she broke his arm anyway with a loud _snap_.

"Get out of here, you weakling!" The thief yelled, kicking him as he started to crawl away. "Run home to your mother, and then smack her in the mouth for raising someone stupid enough to attack Blind the Master Thief!"

With a loud _huff_ as if she were annoyed, Miranda collected up her stolen loot, which wasn't much, and then went back to where the Queen was still hiding. Again loudly announcing that _the friendly approach wasn't going to work_ , she and Zelda walked right out into the open like they belonged… at least like _Miranda_ did, while some of the mercenaries commented about the name _Blind_.

"Yes, yes, my friends, I really _am_ Blind the Master Thief." She said, much more politely while doing a half-hearted curtsy. "I and my sister, the fearsome slave trader, _Sheik_ , have come here because we heard that _someone_ was hiring for a _really_ big job, and that this _someone_ … is kin to the sorcerer, Ganondorf."

Now there was more murmuring throughout the village, pretty much confirming her suspicions that the information she had tortured out of that Parutamu was accurate, but then the crowd grew silent. The silence lasted only for a moment, replaced by the sound of footsteps so heavy that the ground shook a little with each one, and then the creatures and mercenaries alike moved off to the side so that a clear path was formed when a really, really big and muscular figure walked out.

"You must have some pretty reliable sources, Blind." Boss Gooma said as he walked toward the two of them. "I am building an army for a job… the job of a lifetime, in fact… and yes, Ganondorf was my cousin… a cousin that I heard _you_ helped kill."

"Your cousin was an _idiot_ , and the King paid me a _fortune_." Miranda said, almost aggressively while stepping right up to the man who dwarfed her slender frame. "But my sister and I don't like living in the past, _Gooma_ , so kiss my hand like a _gentleman_ , and then we can talk business."

She held out her hand, and the big man just stood there for almost a minute, before a smile slowly started to crack across his face. His spiked helmet tilted a little bit when he began to laugh shortly after, but then surprised everyone when he took Miranda's hand and kissed it, saying that it was a pleasure to meet such a _reputable_ _criminal of Hyrule_. Zelda, meanwhile, had kept her distance, but gasped when Gooma grabbed her hand as well, pulling her up to him so that he could kiss hers as well… for a lot longer than he had done with Miranda.

"You smell wonderful… Sheik, is it?" He said, now holding her hand with both of his. "Short hair excites me, and I _love_ a woman who keeps her silence."

"I'm, uh… flattered, Gooma." The Queen replied, looking like she was trying not to be sick. "But you're really not my type, see… I like men who are more _pretty_."

Again bursting out with laughter, the big man swatted Zelda on the rear, giving her a half-hug with his one arm, and then patting her on the head. This distraction gave Miranda the time she needed to spin around and get a better look at the buildings, figuring that the most populated and heavily guarded one would be the best place to start looking for Façade. But how was she going to get to actually look around for him without raising suspicion?

"That's because you've never been with a _real man_ , Sheik." Gooma continued. "Stick close to me, beautiful, and try your hardest to win my favor, because soon I'll be the King of Hyrule!"

"Doesn't Hyrule already have a King?" Miranda said, stopping the cheer that started after his announcement. "You know, pretty face, long beautiful hair… goes by the name Façade?"

"Oh, King Façade is so _handsome_." Zelda continued, finally getting the hint from all the winking her cousin was doing toward her. "I hear he's the finest warrior in the Kingdom as well, so how are you going to defeat him?"

The big man started to turn red in the face with anger at hearing how great these two women thought the King of Hyrule was, so of course Gooma just _had_ to start bragging about how Façade was already taken care of. According to the big man, without his Lord Sheriff and robed wizard to protect him, Façade was easily defeated, and the creatures and mercenaries around him cheered when he added that the King was chained up in his personal dungeon right there in town.

"Wait a moment, Gooma, wait a moment." Miranda said, putting her hands on her hips as if she didn't believe him. "Are you telling me that you _actually_ have the King of Hyrule locked up in some dungeon around here? That is something that I will have to _see_ to believe, thank you."

"Fine then, _Blind_ , I'll show you who the greatest warrior in Hyrule is." The big man boasted, his own hands on his hips, maybe to mock her. "I'll have one of my guards take you down to see my prisoner, but it will cost you. Afterwards, you both join my army, and at each mealtime your sister sits on my lap… how does that sound to you, Sheik?"

"It _sounds_ like you should show us the King." The Queen said, suddenly bold while stepping forward. "Show me that you've _really_ captured him like you said… and I'm _yours_."

Way to go Zelda, Miranda thought as the crowd reacted to her performance, and sure enough, with a snap of Gooma's fingers, a guard came to escort them down to where Façade was being held. Of course, the thief couldn't help but wonder if this was a trap; if the big man saw right through their performance, being that _Ganondorf_ had been incredibly smart… or was Gooma really this big of an idiot?

Was it possible that it really _was_ going to be this easy to get Façade free? Or were the two of them walking right into a trap the moment they were shown into one of the most brightly lit nearby buildings… a building that had a trapdoor leading down to a deep stone staircase.


	23. Chapter 23 Death Valley

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Twenty Three: Death Valley**

Link hadn't wanted to leave the nice, warm bed at the inn where he had spent another wonderful night with Sing in his arms, although _getting rest_ might not have been the best way to describe how things went, even though it had been the plan. Whereas each night between the trials had seemed to take a long time before, this one was over in a flash, meaning that it was time to move on to Death Valley, since all of the trials of the curse were complete.

Power, Courage, and Wisdom… one trial to represent each of the Triforces, including the lost one, and now that the Lord Sheriff thought about it, this was probably a good way to weed out who was worthy… although the previous chosen ones might have disagreed. Something had moved within the ground, as had happened each other time after Link's success, but unlike both other times, there had been no accompanying dream of Koholint Island or the original Princess Zelda.

"All I have to do is use this recorder, and we'll be taken to Death Valley." The dark haired magician explained, before hugging him again. "I can get us pretty close to the Great Palace, but the wards protecting it mean that the last leg of the journey will have to be on foot… Death Valley is _not_ a safe or pleasant place."

"You don't have to worry, Sing." The Lord Sheriff replied, giving her a kiss. "How bad could this Great Palace be after everything else I've been through?"

The truth was that she didn't know; although the three trials to be proven worthy had been created by the dark haired magician as part of the curse to open the barrier around the palace, anything that might be encountered within its walls was a mystery to her. Back before the original Zelda had gone to sleep, the King of Hyrule had hidden the third Triforce away inside of the Great Palace, but Sing hadn't known that until feeling where the new barrier had appeared… making it too late to use the information.

"By then my fiancé… the _Prince_ , I mean, was angry with me." She explained as they held each other in the middle of the room. "He put me out on the street… exiled me… blamed me for his sister's fate and the missing Triforce, even though the whole thing was _his_ idea… so why bother telling him that I found it after all?"

"So then we should break the curse and show everyone that you aren't evil." Link replied. "Princess Zelda already told me in that dream that she forgives you, so why shouldn't Façade and the _current_ Zelda do the same once we come back with the Triforce?"

Yes, the dark haired magician had committed some really serious crimes against the Kingdom, the royal family, and caused the deaths of dozens of Hyrule's greatest heroes over the past few hundred years, but the Lord Sheriff could only hope that the King and Queen would be able to see past that when all of this was over. To do that, however, the quest would have to be completed, so after putting the recorder to her lips, Sing blew a note that caused the wind to swirl around them.

At this point Link was certain that he would never get used to traveling in this way, and even though it was astonishing how far one could go in such a short time, the dizziness and nausea that came with it… at least for _him_ , wasn't worth it. Sing was unaffected when they came to a stop, while the Lord Sheriff had to bend down with his arms on his legs to keep himself from vomiting, and that was when he realized how hot the air had become.

The ground had a reddish-brown tint, as did the mountains that surrounded the valley, with small, barely visible waves of heat coming off the rocks. The air was so hot that it almost burned just to take a breath, and in a matter of seconds the two of them were sweating to the point where it looked like they had been walking through a rain storm. Looking over the edge of a nearby cliff, Link found that the source of all this heat was a river of magma far below, similar to the one possessed by Barba, but a lot bigger.

"I got us as close as I could." Sing explained, wiping the sweat from her face with her sleeve. "Come on, the Great Palace is just up that trail, and around the corner."

With a steep trail in front of them, and a seemingly endless stretch of valley to the rear, the two of them started upward, with the dark haired magician having more trouble with the walk than Link had expected. Taking her hand in order to help, the pace was slowed a bit, but the two of them made steady progress, all the while the Lord Sheriff keeping watch for anything that might have been hidden behind the rocks, waiting to ambush them.

"Nothing lives in Death Valley, Link." Sing continued, almost stumbling sideways. "Most people that try to make it through on foot end up dying of thirst or simply burning up."

As comforting as it was to know that there were probably no enemies lying in wait, the knowledge that this place could kill people on its own was not very reassuring. The trail was also a lot longer than Link had expected, and soon he was forced to carry the dark haired magician, who insisted that a freezing spell would do no good there, because it would melt in seconds and just make them feel worse. Not that he minded carrying her, suddenly finding himself imagining carrying her across the threshold of their quarters at the North Palace… or maybe even a house… yeah, someplace small and outside the palace walls that was just theirs.

"Link, you won't survive if you use all your strength on me." Sing suddenly said, interrupting his thoughts. "You're going to have to leave me and go on ahead… I'll try to catch up at my own pace."

"I'm _not_ leaving you alone in this place." The Lord Sheriff replied, slowing just a bit with every step. "The only way we separate is if you use the recorder to go back to the inn and rest. You said you can feel when the Triforce is moved or something, right? That will be your signal to come and get me."

He didn't want to be away from her; regardless of the quest, her crimes, or this place, all that Link wanted to do was hold the dark haired magician in his arms… but he knew that with as badly as the valley was hurting her, there was no way for him to keep her safe. Sing reluctantly agreed, asking him to stay safe, and then both saying _I love you_ at the same time, she used the recorder to vanish back across the landscape. The rush of moving air was nice, even though it was still hot, and now that the dark haired magician was safe, Link needed to get moving.

As concerned as he had been for Sing, looking after her had given him something to focus on instead of how badly Death Valley was hurting him as well, and now the Lord Sheriff had to use his silver sword as a kind of walking stick so that he didn't fall on his face. After a while the heat of the rocks on the ground was starting to burn through his boots, and it took all of his strength to take that last step onto the plateau at the end of the trail… when suddenly all of the heat was gone.

Well, not gone, but certainly heavily reduced to an almost comfortable temperature, as if he had just walked through some kind of invisible wall that kept the heat out… making him feel kind of silly for sending Sing away, at least… until he discovered the reason that this was happening. The first thing Link saw was a giant, flashing cube of light that was turned a little crooked, as if starting to sink into the puddle of magma around it, and the second thing he saw was a group of Wizzrobes working to maintain whatever spell it was they were using.

"This still isn't working!" An angry voice yelled from up ahead. "Why is nothing working?! This wall will come down… even if it _kills_ all of you!"

The robes wizards were standing around the perimeter of the invisible wall, facing it with arms raised to maintain the good temperature, while standing in front of the only part of the flashing cube that touched solid ground, two more figures stood. The bigger one in the red robe was roughly grabbing the smaller one, shoving them into the flashing wall while chanting some words that Link didn't understand… resulting in the smaller figure screaming in pain until he was pulled away again… screaming in a _very_ familiar voice.

"Father… you can't break this wall." Agahnim groaned, breathing heavily during this small respite. "It's part of a curse… nothing can open it expect being worthy."

"And what do _you_ know about being _worthy_?!" Carock demanded, lifting the wizard off his feet. " _You_ , who abandoned your family to become a thief, _you_ , who married some _tart_ without a _drop_ of magic in her blood… _you_ , who aren't screaming _nearly_ enough to pay for all that."

Agahnim screamed again when his father, who Link instantly understood why he would abandon, shoved him back into the flashing barrier. The wizard kept screaming while Carock chanted yet another incantation, this one no more successful than the last, and tossing his son onto the ground in anger after pulling him back. With a wave of his hand, a strange curved wave of white energy was sent right at the fallen wizard, causing a large explosion that resulted with Agahnim being flung up into the air, only to crash down on his back.

"Pathetic _and_ weak… like your _mother_." The red wizard growled, more white energy gathering in his hand. "And now you can…

Link didn't really understand the circumstances of how his friend had ended up there, or what they were really trying to accomplish, but he wasn't about to allow this thug to hurt Agahnim anymore. The ground within the barrier was cool enough for him to reach down and pick up a rock, and the Lord Sheriff tossed it right at the back of the red wizard's head… stopping his words as Carock vanished just before the rock would have hit him… and reappearing so that he was standing right over Link… before releasing the white energy.


	24. Chapter 24 A Royal Rescue

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Twenty Four: A Royal Rescue**

"No, no, that's not what Boss Gooma said." One of the guards escorting Zelda and Miranda said. "According to him, Ganondorf didn't _really_ die in Spectacle Rock, he's just kind of… trapped somewhere."

"Trapped, killed, whatever." The second guard replied as they moved deeper into the underground fortress. "I say that if it requires the blood of the guy who fought with you to bring you back, you _gotta_ be dead."

As eager as she was to help her cousin rescue her husband, Miranda listened intently to what the guards were saying; almost gasping when they talked about needing Link's blood in order to somehow bring Ganondorf back. So, was that why Gooma had gathered this supposedly enormous force of monsters and mercenaries, yet hadn't made any move beyond a single pathetic attempt to seize the North Palace?

Down deeper and deeper into the remarkably well hidden dungeon they went, until finally turning off of the main stairwell, even though it continued downward still, leaving it in order to pass through a heavy wooden door, into a long room which contained a row of holding cells. Most of them were empty as they started down the corridor, or contained bodies of the dead, some of which looked pretty fresh.

"This is what happens to those who reject Boss Gooma's invitation." The first guard explained, with a slight laugh. "Good thing you girls did the smart thing, huh?"

Mocking him silently while keeping her eyes on the cells, it was the very last one on the right which was occupied, both by a large tub of water for some reason… and by Façade, whose head was down as he still hung by his wrists, suspended so that his feet were a few inches above the stone floor. The two guards laughed at the sight, making some pretty inappropriate remarks about what had been done to the prisoner, but Miranda's only focus was on freeing him.

This was going to be a dangerous process, since she and Zelda needed to both free the King from his cell _and_ escape without alerting Gooma or any of his cronies… perhaps later tonight when most of them had gone to sleep, because there were way too many of them up there on the surface to try using the recorder… suddenly there was the unmistakable sound of an arrow being fired from a bow, along with one of the guards crying out when the arrow in question went into the front of his neck.

Her careful planning interrupted, Miranda turned around just in time to see her cousin draw another arrow, shooting it into the remaining guard's chest before he could do as much as cry for help. Like his partner, the second guard fell against the bars of the next cell, before collapsing to the floor, and although she had been impressed with Zelda's proficiency with the bow, the two of them were going to find themselves in a pretty dire situation if anyone came to check on the two guards.

"Open the cell, Miranda!" Zelda said urgently… and loudly. "Get my husband out of there!"

"Hush!" Miranda whispered with her own urgency, putting her hand over the Queen's mouth. "There's no way out if someone hears us, and we can't use the recorder until we're back out in open air. Just… just give me a second to think."

Her cousin had really complicated things since the two guards were now dead… or were they? Okay, a plan was starting to form… maybe not the ideal one, but given the circumstances, it was the best thing they had at the moment. Oh, this was going to be difficult to pull off, even for Blind the Master Thief, but maybe… just maybe… this plan was just _ridiculous_ enough to work. The final parts of her plan came into focus after taking a look at the dead guards, the empty cell next to the King's… and then their own outfits.

"Switch clothes with one of the guards, while I free Façade." The thief ordered, taking the special key out of her hair. "Then drag him into the empty cell, and leave him face down with head pointing toward the wall."

Zelda followed these instructions, stripping out of her clothes and into the guard uniform, before trying to squeeze the dead man into her Sheik outfit… which was a lot more difficult than she had imagined. Meanwhile, Miranda opened the door to Façade's cell, as well as releasing the shackles from his wrists, and dragging him out of the cell. The King groaned a little, but was otherwise unresponsive, so she propped him up against the wall, and joined the Queen in putting on their disguises.

"Zelda… Miranda?" He said weakly, struggling to even open his eyes. "Together… undressing? I love it when… I have this dream."

The Queen tried to run over to him immediately, but was stopped when Miranda grabbed her by the forearm; reminding her that they needed to get dressed and escape or all of them were going to die down there. Thankfully, no one had come to check on them up until this point, allowing the two women to put the disguised guards in the empty cell and get their new armor situated, before each grabbing one of Façade's arms.

"Now, whatever happens, just act like you're supposed to be doing this." Miranda explained as they started toward the door. "And for the love of all that is good, let _me_ do all the talking if we're stopped."

Relatively safe while inside the dungeon, the real danger began as soon as they passed back through the wooden door, and back into the stairwell, but surprisingly there was no one there to stop them. Everyone must have been celebrating on the surface, since this was a mercenary force after all, and therefore not as disciplined as a standard force. In fact, no one got in their way at all… until at the very last segment of stairs, when they just about walked right into a solitary, large figure.

"What that… is that _Façade_?!" Boss Gooma demanded, glaring angrily at the two of them. "You two had better have a damn good explanation for…

" _Your plan_ worked like a charm, Boss Gooma." Miranda interrupted in her lowest possible voice. "Those two women were spies _just like you thought_ , and Sheik was _so_ impressed with how _you_ brilliantly trapped them, while also having us move the King to _your secret location_ , that she wants to _marry_ you. I just wish I was as intelligent as you, Boss Gooma… how do you do it?"

"Well, some of us are born with brains, and some not." The large man replied, looking offly proud of himself. "Good work, you two… get Façade to the secret location, and then double the guard while I go and, uh… see to my future wife."

Moving up against the wall so that Gooma could walk past them, Miranda could only partially believe that such a ridiculous story would actually work, and now the large man was whistling what sounded like _the wedding march_ as he vanished down the stairwell. So it was true… Gooma really _was_ an idiot, but regardless of his intelligence, there was only so much time before he discovered the truth, meaning that they had to get the King out of there as fast as possible.

The guards inside the building on the surface had heard the conversation, and allowed them to pass freely, but the ones out in the village were a different story, and very quickly noticed that their most important prisoner was not where he was supposed to be. Thinking quickly, Miranda told them that Hyrule spies had been captured down in the dungeon, as well as lying to them that Boss Gooma was going to let every man in camp have ten minutes with Blind the Thief… throwing in a joke that most of the men there only needed _two_ minutes.

Apparently, the story was good enough for them, since every guard within earshot ran for the underground dungeon as quickly as they could, while making sure not to alert anyone else so that the uh… _line_ wasn't so long. Hopefully the commotion they were making as they thundered down the stairs would drown out their leader's voice when he tried to tell them what was really going on, but that didn't matter once she and Zelda got the King past the village limits.

"Wait, Miranda, we can't just _go_." Zelda protested when she took out the recorder. "I know we need to get Façade out of here, but we can't just let Gooma keep building his army like this."

"We're not going to have to worry about _him_ anymore." Miranda explained with a smirk. "When his _army_ finds out that their leader lost their prize prisoner, got outwitted by a couple of girls, _and_ lied to them about getting to have their way with the most _beautiful_ woman in Hyrule, they'll probably kill him, themselves. And besides, we know where their base is, so we'll just send _our_ army to take care of whoever is left."

With nothing else to keep them there, and the commotion in the village starting to escalate, Miranda played the recorder, causing the wind to blow as they were swept up in the same whirlwind as before. Miranda's only regret about all this was that they hadn't been able to find out what happened to Agahnim. One thing at a time, the thief told herself as the wind dropped them off back at the North Palace. Façade looked like Gooma had _really_ been working him over in the torture department, so right now the most important thing was getting him healed.

"Send someone to Link's quarters." Zelda ordered to the nearest servants. "He always keeps some of that potion Agahnim makes.

Again, Miranda's thoughts turned to her own husband, taken away by someone awful, with not even Gooma knowing where… but she knew that her husband was strong, and if anyone could hold on until she found him, it was her husband. She just hoped that he wasn't going through the same kind of treatment that Façade had gotten.


	25. Chapter 25 The Red Wizard

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Twenty Five: The Red Wizard**

Just barely having time to get his small shield up before the white, curved energy was released, there was a small explosion that made Link's ears ring for a second as he was thrown backwards. Crying out when his back was scraped up from sliding across the rocky terrain, the Lord Sheriff scrambled to his feet while raising his sword, only to find out that he had lost his grip on it at some point. Easily spotting the silver weapon against the brown rocks, he started toward it, only to have Carock appear in his path.

The punch came before Link could react, hitting him between the eyes and making him stumble backwards, followed by the red wizard kicking him in the chest. The Lord Sheriff might have fallen onto his back from this last one that made him gasp for breath, but then Carock vanished, instantly reappearing behind him with a spinning kick to the back of the head, making Link get a face full of rocks while once again sliding across the terrain.

"I remember you… the new Hyrule Sheriff now, am I right?" The red wizard asked as Link made a failed attempt to get up. "The friend that Agahnim ran off with all those years ago, to be a common thief instead of staying with the order."

Instead of immediately trying to fight again, the Lord Sheriff crawled across the ground over to where his silver sword had fallen. Grabbing onto the weapon, and then stumbling a bit when he stood up, he advanced toward Carock, but the red wizard leaned to the side just enough to avoid the slash attack that followed. Stepping and leaning just enough to avoid each of Link's attacks, the two of them circled around the plateau, the other wizzrobes and the wounded Agahnim just watching as the Lord Sheriff failed to hit his target again and again.

"Give me that, _boy_." Carock said, grabbing onto the hilt while kneeing Link in the stomach hard enough to make him fall down. "Are you _sure_ you defeated Ganondorf? Perhaps I will keep you alive until I retrieve the third Triforce from this place… so that we can ask him?"

So, _that_ was that the red wizard was doing in Death Valley… trying to use his own son to break open Sing's barrier to the Great Palace, so he could what… use the three Triforces to somehow bring Ganondorf back? Could they even _do_ that? Regardless, this desire meant that Carock was a dangerous enemy of Hyrule, and that he needed to be stopped from ever getting near the Triforce of Courage.

This new determination filled the Lord Sheriff with energy, realizing that not only was the fate of the original Princess Zelda in his hands, but that of the entire Kingdom once again. So he jumped to his feet, ready to… have his whole plan shattered when the red wizard struck him across the face with the hilt of the silver sword. Link saw double, realizing several seconds later than he had collapsed, but then Carock stabbed the sword into the ground, before grabbing onto Link and pulling him to his feet.

"You _worthless_ , _uppity_ , _peasant_." The red wizard scolded, slugging him in the stomach with every accented insult. "Fight back, you _servile_ , _inbred_ , _peon_."

After that last hit, the Lord Sheriff used the last of his strength to swing his shield, since it was locked onto his forearm, but Carock vanished at the last second, reappearing off to the side with a chop to Link's ribs, and then another release of that white curved energy, this time hitting him right in the chest. Flying out the back of the explosion, the Lord Sheriff had rolled across the ground and slid to a stop, before he'd even realized that he'd been hit, and now with most of his shirt burned off… Link wasn't getting back up.

"Weak and pitiful." The red wizard said, pressing his foot down hard into the Lord Sheriff's chest, gathering white energy in each hand. "Do you feel that, boy? That is the realization that you are going to die in your proper place… under my _heel_."

" _Reflejar_." Agahnim said weakly, pointing his hand toward Link.

A barely visible distortion of light formed around the Lord Sheriff's body just as Carock released this double attack, but this time it was the red wizard who screamed as he was thrown backwards. His robe singed from the blast, and stunned from being completely blindsided by such a powerful attack, Carock was again surprised when his son vanished, reappearing long enough to grab the sword, and then vanishing again… this time reappearing so that he could drive the silver blade right into the red wizard's chest.

"Agahnim?!" Carock gasped, grabbing onto his son. "Agahnim… not good enough!"

The younger wizard was already wounded, so he didn't stand a chance when the red wizard released another blast of the curved white energy right into his chest. Agahnim was catapulted into the air, falling onto one of the other wizzrobes, and causing a disruption in the spell that was keeping the temperature down, but the others made up for it, restoring the field in a couple seconds by spacing themselves out a bit more. Something had changed in Carock, though, as he ripped the sword out of himself… he was moving slower… bleeding… and his robes were no longer red.

"What?!" the no longer red wizard demanded, dropping the sword on the ground. "How did… no!"

His answer came when Carock looked back over to where Agahnim had fallen… seeing that his son had very stealthily killed the wizzrobe he had landed on by breaking his neck…and holding in his hand the necklace with ruby ring that he had pulled from his father's neck before being hit with the curved white energy. Now drinking the potion that the dead wizzrobe had been carrying, and slipping the red ring onto his finger, it was _Agahnim's_ robes that now turned the protective red color as he got to his feet.

"So, you have a… backbone after all." Carock said, gathering white curved energy in his hand while Agahnim gathered flame in his. "So what now, son? Are you going to kill me? Can you _really_ do it?"

"No, father, I can't." The wizard replied, the flame fading from his palm. "I hate you, and you deserve it, but I can't… so _he_ will."

Having taken his eyes off Link during the whole exchange, the formerly red wizard hadn't noticed the Lord Sheriff slowly crawling toward there the silver sword had been dropped, and he still hadn't noticed until Link stood up and swung the blade with all his might. Slicing through Carock's neck with ease that Link had only seen while wielding the Master Sword before, the formerly red wizard's head was completely separated from his body, causing most of him to collapse to the ground while his head sank into the nearby magma pool.

"Carock is dead!" One of the other wizzrobes announced. "Long live Agahnim, the Red Wizard!"

"Silence!" Agahnim yelled, stopping them in mid-cheer. "One of you give me a potion, and then get the hell out of my sight, all of you!"

The other wizzrobes obeyed, one of them handing him another healing potion, before the whole group vanished at once. This caused the temperature of the surrounding area to go back up, but also allowed Agahnim to bring the healing potion to his bruised and bloodied friend… who would have certainly died moments later without it. However, the red liquid did just what it was supposed to; closing the Lord Sheriff's wounds and restoring him to health so that Link could stand once again.

"I've stopped counting how many times you've saved my life, Agahnim." The Lord Sheriff said. "I'm uh… really sorry about your father, though."

"Don't be." The wizard replied. "This _traitor_ helped Gooma and Rebonack kidnap King Façade, and now that you're here… I have to go and rescue him."

This statement was news to Link, since he hadn't heard _anything_ from the King and Queen since starting off on his quest, but while Agahnim was willing to give him a condensed version of what was happening in his absence, the Lord Sheriff's offer to come and help was refused. After all, Façade had told the wizard about the quest Link was on, and how important it was to the future of the Kingdom, so his place was to stay and complete it… just like it had been five years ago when Agahnim hadn't wanted to get involved at first.

"You go and claim the Triforce." The wizard said, starting to walk away. "Gooma would have already been dead if my father hadn't interfered… I'll see you back at the North Palace."

With that, Agahnim vanished, leaving Link once again on his own as the temperature of the plateau continued to rise, now with nothing up ahead but the flashing barrier that supposedly surrounded the Great Palace. However, as he approached, the crackling, illuminated wall that had dome so much harm to Agahnim, the Lord Sheriff honestly had no idea what he was supposed to do. Suddenly the tattoo on his hand started to hurt, burning like it had done when it first appeared, and when he looked at it this time, it was actually glowing… glowing and flashing just like the barrier wall.

He wasn't sure how he knew, but something called him to touch the barrier with his hand, and instead of experiencing a horrific pain like Agahnim had gotten… the barrier turned a pure white color before vanishing. In its place stood a golden overhang that was supported by elaborately carved pillars, also made of gold. In fact, all of the floors, walls, and ceiling that he could see in this archway were golden… and just like the barrier had been, the entrance was crooked a little bit, as if the whole palace, which must've been built into the mountain itself like Spectacle Rock, was shifting because of the magma.

Beyond the elaborate entrance was a staircase that went down into the hidden part of the Great Palace, and as he took those first steps across the golden walkway, Link knew that somewhere down in the depths of this place… the Triforce of Courage was waiting for him to come and claim it.


	26. Chapter 26 Mercy for Gooma

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Twenty Six: Mercy for Gooma**

When Miranda and Zelda had entered the abandoned town of Old Kasuto under the guise of Blind and Sheik, they had crept in under the cover of darkness, and passed into the village as if they belonged. This way they had been able to gather information without arousing suspicion, and escape without anyone ever knowing the truth about who they were or why they had come in the first place… Agahnim was not so subtle.

Materializing just outside the main, and decently guarded gate of the village, the wizard gathered a large ball of flame in his hand, which exploded when he tossed it at the barred door. There was so much force behind the blast that the wooden door was knocked off its hinges, and a couple of the guards were sent flying a short distance who were closest to it. Now strolling into Old Kasuto as if he were the owner, Agahnim kicked the first guard back down when he tried to get up, and tossed a small ball of flame at the next one, causing him to scream and run around while his body was completely engulfed.

"Gooma!" The wizard yelled, before pausing to turn another guard into a gelatinous Bot. "Where is Gooma?!"

Freezing another guard before shattering him with a punch, vanishing behind another one to break his neck, and then electrocuting five more to death with one blast from his powerful _thunder_ spell, Agahnim could not be stopped as he marched his way through the town, checking each of the buildings one at a time. Three of Gooma's mercenaries tried to ambush him upon opening the front door of a house, but he vanished so that one of their spears hit their own man instead of him, and in a flash of light the other two were condemned to spend the rest of their lives as Bots.

"Stop, stop, please!" A lizard-like Geru creature begged as he and some others fell to their knees. "You want Gooma? We'll give him to you, just stop this!"

What unfolded next was a tale that the wizard hadn't expected; apparently Blind the Master Thief and her sister, Sheik had managed to rescue King Façade right from under Gooma's nose. This humiliation had more or less destroyed the mercenary army's faith in Ganondorf's cousin, especially after his rumored defeat at King's Cross, as well as the failed attempt to take the North Palace… so they had locked him in the dungeon that had previously held Hyrule's King.

"We don't want any more trouble from Hyrule." The Geru insisted. "We were wrong to follow Gooma, just let us live, and we will never cause any trouble again, we swear it."

"Tell me where Gooma is." Agahnim calmly replied. "And then you have ten minutes to gather your possessions… as a ruling Lord of Hyrule, I hereby banish you from this Kingdom forever, for your crimes."

The people and creatures that made up Gooma's forces were more than happy to take this deal, since Ganondorf's cousin was nothing compared to the original, and once they revealed the entrance to the dungeon, the whole lot ran into their claimed homes in order to collect their possessions… which were probably stolen. However, as soon as they ran into the buildings, a yellowish colored energy began to form between the wizard's hands, growing in intensity over the next minute or so until the creatures began to notice… too late.

" _Bombos_!" Agahnim yelled, releasing the energy.

One of his most powerful spells, the light was released into a shockwave of burning, explosive energy that swept through the abandoned village, cutting off the screams of the mercenaries and creatures as it pulverized the old houses, and when the smoke finally cleared the abandoned village of Old Kasuto was nothing more than a memory. The wizard had considered waiting to do that until Gooma was on the surface as well, but a quick punishment was too good for the man who had dared to have the North Palace attacked… while Miranda had been there.

Plus, Gooma was locked in a cell, giving the wizard plenty of time to recover after using such a spell… and about after several minutes of just trying to catch his breath, it was time to recover yet another prisoner from the underground fortress. With the naive hope of saving their own lives, the mercenaries had told him the truth; their former leader was sitting in a cell right where they said he would be, and at first the large man was actually pleased to see him.

"Carock, my friend, I knew you would help me." Gooma said hopefully, rushing up to the bars and grabbing onto them. "These filthy traitors turned on me, but from all the noise upstairs, I guess you taught them the price of treason, didn't… Carock? Oh… oh, no… No, not _you_ again."

"I'm glad you mentioned _treason_ , Gooma." Agahnim replied, flame in his hand giving more light to the cells. "You're under arrest for crimes against the Crown, and my father is _dead_ , so no one is coming to save you. Now, you can either come with me and face the judgement of your King… or we can have a trial by combat, like Rebonack wanted. Choose."

Part of the wizard hoped that the large man would attack him upon opening the cell door, but instead Gooma simply hung his head, and complied. After all, the man was an idiot whose only victories had come from being rescued, and who had lost his whole army. Pathetic, Agahnim thought as he marched his prisoner back up to the demolished surface, where the shock of Old Kasuto's destruction shocked him yet again… this man would _never_ be the worthy opponent that Ganondorf had been.

With the traveling recorder that had belonged to his father, it was an easy thing to escort the prisoner back to the North Palace, the two of them arriving in the outside courtyard in a heavy gust of wind. Ordering the surprised guards to inform Queen Zelda of their arrival, Agahnim also had a set of shackles brought in for Gooma; chaining him like an animal while snatching the spiked helmet off his head while waiting for the word for them to enter.

That word came a couple minutes later for the prisoner to be brought into the throne room, and when Agahnim pushed the large man inside, not only was Zelda there, but so was Miranda, as well as Façade, who was being helped by a servant over to the throne, where he still seemed to be in pain while being helped to sit down. Probably breaking some kind of procedural rules, Miranda ran across the throne room, right past the chained Gooma, and threw her arms around her husband. They kissed, and kissed, and kissed some more, but then they had to get back to business.

"King Façade, Queen Zelda, I present to you… _Gooma_." Agahnim said, handing the spiked helmet to his wife to give to them. "Charged with _Inciting Rebellion_ , _Kidnapping the Monarch_ , _Unlawful Occupation of a Village_ , _Conspiracy against the Royal Family_ , and _High Treason_ … kneel."

When the large man didn't immediately respond to this order, the wizard slammed his knee into Gooma's stomach, and then punched him in the side of the head when he bent forward, to bring him to his knees. He then grabbed the large man in a submission hold, squeezing Gooma's neck with his arm, demanding that he declare himself Façade's loyal subject and swear fealty to him, just like what had happened at King's Cross before Carock had interrupted them.

"Stop!" Gooma gagged, unable to free himself. "I'm… I'm his loyal subject… I swear… I swear fealty to King Façade."

"Don't forget the Queen." Agahnim reminded him, choking him again. "You would give your _life_ for Queen Zelda, wouldn't you? Say it!"

Gooma said the words, coughing and gagging when he was finally able to draw a proper breath after the wizard released him. Everyone knew the charges and the details of the crimes organized by the large man, but when the part of the trial came for those willing to speak _for_ Gooma, everyone was surprised when it was _Agahnim_ who stepped forward. Saying that although the cousin of Ganondorf was guilty, some mercy should be shown because of what a dismal failure he was.

"Like the village idiot trying to live up to his hero." The wizard continued. "Gooma tried, through ignorance and self-delusion, to follow in Ganondorf's footsteps. This man is a broken, feeble, coward, and although he does not deserve it, I ask your Highnesses to consider a show of mercy… out of pity, if nothing else."

Agahnim smirked at the scowling Gooma, intentionally trying to anger and humiliate him further, but if the large man wanted any chance to save his own life, he could only sit there and go along with these infuriating insults to what was left of his honor. With the majority of the trial complete, the large man was left to sit there while Façade and Zelda whispered to one another, before eventually calling Miranda over to join in the conversation, while the wizard stayed with Gooma.

"Gooma, cousin of Ganondorf." Façade said once the discussions were over. "As King of Hyrule, I find you guilty of all charges, but… as the injured party, I must defer sentencing to my Queen."

"You and your _family_ have inflicted great harm on _my_ Kingdom." Zelda immediately snapped, trying to calm herself. "Normally you would be put to death, but after hearing the words of Lord Agahnim… you will be shown a measure of mercy. As Queen of Hyrule, I sentence you to twenty years, hard labor in the service of this Kingdom. You will build roads, dig canals, and play the role of a frightened _peasant-girl_ in the yearly reenactment of Lord Sheriff Link's _heroic_ defeat of your cousin. Take him away."

Now Gooma seemed to come to life, snarling at the guards who grabbed him, and trying to lunge angrily for the Queen until he was dragged out of sight toward the palace dungeons. Well, the great revolution of Gooma and his followers was over, and now that order was restored, all they had left to do was wait for Link to return. Façade, Zelda, and Miranda were delighted to hear that the Lord Sheriff had made it to the Great Palace, but they could only hope that he was prepared for what was waiting within.


	27. Chapter 27 The Great Palace

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Twenty Seven: The Great Palace**

Link had no idea what to expect as he past the entrance, and made his way down into the Great Palace, where the walls, floor, and ceiling were still consistently made of gold, but since this was to be the last leg of his journey, he wasn't about to let any traps or monsters stand in his way. It was time, after what felt like years, to reclaim the Triforce of Courage, wake the original Princess Zelda from her cursed sleep, and make Hyrule whole again.

However, when he reached the bottom of the stairs and drew his silver sword for battle with the worst monsters that the darker parts of the Kingdom had to offer, he entered the first hall to find… that it was empty. Fully furnished and immaculately clean, with drapes and banners of the old Hyrule families proudly on display, and the light from wall mounted torches reflecting off the gold structure, the Great Palace was truly a wonder to behold… but it was so totally empty that it bothered the Lord Sheriff, even more than a room full of enemies.

"Hello?" He called, hearing his own voice echo several times. "I've come for the Triforce!"

He figured that if legions of horrific monsters were waiting to ambush him anyway, he might as well call them out into the open, but even after alerting the whole palace to his presence, nothing moved or made a sound. Link was also getting nowhere by just staying where he was, so he continued on, trying quite unsuccessfully to silence the sound of his footsteps as he came to a staircase. Now that he thought about it, this part of the palace looked a lot like the North Palace did, so maybe the more important things were stored upstairs.

The echoes were so incredibly loud and repeated as he made his way upward, that the Lord Sheriff was starting to understand why this place had been originally abandoned, and this made him thankful for each time that he got to walk over a throw rug. This temporary halt to the echoes was the finest silence that Link had ever heard, causing him to follow the rug through the door into a nearby chamber… a chamber with a feature so interesting that it caused him to stop in his tracks.

No, the Triforce of Courage wasn't there, but there were huge, painted portraits hung up and spaced out along the room's four walls, beginning with one that looked incredibly familiar when he took a closer look. Set against the backdrop of a high mountain fortress, Link could see the clearly drawn images of his younger self locked in battle with Ganondorf, while Façade defended himself against Darknut with his shield.

The others were there as well; Agahnim was in the air, setting fire to Lord Vire as they fought, while Miranda in her guise as Blind the Master Thief, engaged the boomerang throwing Goriya… all while the elderly Impa and captured Zelda huddled together in the center with the red and green Triforces. This was an incredible painting of their adventure five years ago, but he couldn't help but wonder who had painted it, especially since Sing had told him that no one had been inside in a very long time.

Next to that one was an even more disturbing portrait, well, disturbing but beautiful as it showed another Triforce, a blue one this time, hovering over the sleeping form of the original Princess Zelda. In front of this backdrop was Link as he currently was, ready to engage an unseen enemy with his sword while his other arm embraced Sing lovingly. Façade and Agahnim were there again, this time back to back while surrounded by three figures that the Lord Sheriff didn't recognize, except for Carock. The other two were a big man with a spiked helmet and someone who looked like Darknut.

Miranda and Zelda were there, but not in disguise this time as they fought off a pair of twin warriors who looked a bit like skeletons, and even the newly transformed Impa was in the corner, floating with her new fairies wings as if watching the whole scene unfold. It was as if someone had been watching all of his trials and battles, but then again, the paint on these portraits was very old, almost to the point of flaking off.

There were so many of these paintings, stretching across the walls of the room, but Link only decided to look at one more before moving on… the next one down the line. This one was set against the backdrop of a darkened room, where a large golden statue of three connected, maybe Triforces, sat on top of an alter. Half of the background was a brightly lit forest with flowers and trees, while the other was shadowy with bare branches and thorns, while someone who looked like a really angry Agahnim glared down at the whole scene.

At the center, though, were two figures; one was a terrifying looking sort of warthog creature who carried a pitchfork, and the other was a girl… she was young and slender with brown hair, wearing a green outfit similar to the one that Link favored, and ready to fight off the monster with a sword… no, not just any sword as he looked closer… the _Master Sword_. But why did Agahnim look so angry in this one? And what was going on with the darkness and light?

"Like the paintings, do you?" A voice asked, making the Lord Sheriff jump. "It warms my heart to see a young man who makes time for such things."

Where there had been no signs of life within the palace only moments ago, now there was the frail looking form of an old, _old_ man, wearing a hood and cloak similar to the one that Sing wore. He coughed a little while taking his own quick look at the portraits. He did not seem threatening in the slightest, but from everything that Link had seen in his life, he knew better now than to trust what he saw in front of himself.

"Who are you?" He asked, keeping a hand on his sheathed sword. "Are you a guardian of the Triforce?"

"What? Oh, yes, sure… the Triforce… maybe a few hundred years ago." The old man replied. "I believe you know my daughter, although the years have been _far_ kinder to Sing than they have to me. Now, we mustn't spend all day gawking at the old paintings… come along, young man, we've things to do."

The old man motioned for Link to follow, and although watch out for traps as best he could, there really didn't seem to be much choice but to go along for now. As they walked back down the stairs, and down the corridor, the old man related some of the history of this place, saying that it had once been the capital of great Kingdom that had existed before it had been split into regions like Hyrule and Arcadia and such. In those days, the great King held absolute domain, but like all great things, they became undone with greed and desire over time.

"This place isn't what I expected." The Lord Sheriff commented as they passed through another beautifully decorated room. "From all of the trials that Sing put me through, I thought that the Great Palace was going to be a gauntlet of traps and monsters."

"Oh, it was, boy, it once was." The old man replied. "This place was once a death trap, furnished by the first King of Hyrule the deadliest traps and monsters in the land to protect the Triforce of Courage from those deemed unworthy. Oh, my boy, you should have seen the _Tunderbird_ , it was magnificent, but… then Sing added her curse to the mix, and with the barrier up… all of the creatures eventually died."

Apparently he and the monsters, as well as several workmen who were fixing the place up had been trapped inside when his daughter's curse took effect, and once the people and creatures were gone, he disarmed the traps… worried that he would eventually forget where they all were, and set one off himself. With hundreds of years passing with no one being able to enter the Great Palace, the old man had decided to make the best of things since it was his home now, but of course… just after getting things the way he liked it, someone just _had_ to walk in.

"So, aside from your daughter's curse?" Link asked as they started down another staircase. "The Triforce of Courage is just kind of _sitting_ down here… unguarded?"

"Oh, don't be a fool, boy." The old man laughed, nearly slipping on the stairs. "Even without the monsters, the traps, or my powers being what they used to be, I could lead you right to that ridiculous blue pyramid, and you'd never find it without my help, not in a million years. Oh, and since we have a ways to walk, boy… what _exactly_ are your intentions with my daughter?"

Now this question had caught him off guard, although the Lord Sheriff admitted to having fallen in love with Sing, while almost walking into a pillar when the old man took a sharp turn down another corridor into a lower level. What Link wanted was to be able to spend time with the dark haired magician that _didn't_ involve monsters or saving the Kingdom, but then the old man suddenly stopped walking in the center of one of the largest, most elaborate chambers that they had been through so far.

"Boy, I need to ask you something." He said, coughing while leaning heavily on his cane. "Were you _born_ a blithering idiot, or was it a gradual transition? You're letting a _stranger_ lead you through the _Great Palace_ , and you're so wrapped up in a _girl_ that I bet you haven't even been paying attention to how far we've gone… what part of the palace we've gone into… or the way back."

Link was about to say something back to this, but then he realized that the old man was right; he hadn't been paying attention at all, but… but he couldn't see or feel any danger in the surrounding area. Everything there was just as elegant and calm as the rest of the palace, but then the torches on the walls flickered before going out for a moment, and something had changed in the room during that instant of darkness. Just for a second there had been bars blocking the exits, all of the furniture had been gone as was the old man, and there was something moving… but then the light returned and everything was normal again.

"What was that?!" Link exclaimed, looking around and drawing his sword. "Everything was dark… and… what _was_ that?!"

"I was telling the truth that there are no traps or monsters." The old man continued. "But I lied about my magic, it's just as strong as ever, and I was able to preserve a few memories, _shadows_ if you will, but separate from my comfortable home. Unfortunately, my spell doesn't keep them separate from you, though… so get ready, boy… because things in the light are not the same in the dark."

With that, all of the torches went out, leaving the Lord Sheriff in the same room, but with the bars back over the doors, and just enough of an ambient purplish blue glow for him to see that he was no longer alone. The old man was gone, but in his place was a creature… a big, towering creature with the head of a lion, and great big wings on its back that spread out as it rose up into the air.


	28. Chapter 28 Thunderbird

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Twenty Eight: Thunderbird**

With a roar that sounded like a lion and a frightened girl at the same time, the large, shadowed creature swiped at Link with its long claws, creating sparks as they dragged across his shield, and nearly tearing it from his arm as he was sent reeling back against the wall. The creature came at him again an instant later, this time clawing the wall when he moved to the side, responding with a swing of his silver sword.

The blade struck the creature in the side of the head, but simply bounced off, forcing the Lord Sheriff to make a retreat back across the darkened room while the creature flew back up into the air. Seemingly content to circle above for the moment, Link decided to continue his retreat, rushing over to one of the barred doors, and discovering to his horror, that the strange, bluish purple darkness now extended down the corridor to other parts of the palace when he looked through.

All of the other doors that he could see now had bars on them as well, not that he could get to them, and now the Lord Sheriff was forced to move again when the creature roared while diving. This time, instead of its claws, the creature opened its mouth and spewed out a wide cone of flame, lashing out painfully at Link as he ran across the center of the room, but also causing something strange to happen. While the fire was coming at him, the parts of the room illuminated by the orange glow returned to normal, revealing the beautiful furnishing and décor he had seen earlier… only to vanish once again as soon as the flame went out.

Of course, this didn't really help him much at the time, since the creature reverted back to attacking with its claws, forcing Link to take cover behind one of the room's pillars. Trying his best to keep the structure between them by moving around it at the same time that the creature did, the Lord Sheriff kept ducking behind it to avoid the claws, while also stabbing and slashing at the creature with his sword each time an opening presented itself.

He struck the creature several times with blows that would have killed almost any other enemy, and the creature's claws raked painfully down the side of his leg when it found its own opening, but eventually it roared with frustration… before opening its mouth. With no choice but to dive out from behind his cover, Link cried out as the edges of the flames licked at his arm and side, making him painfully crash to the floor while the pillar and surrounding area were illuminated.

This time was different, though, since while most of the area became dark again as soon as the flames went out, the wall-mounted torch that had been revealed by the light stayed lit, keeping its small part of the room looking normal in its flickering light. Almost getting himself grabbed by the creature's claws while transfixed on this event, the Lord Sheriff rolled out of the way as the creature flew right over him, feeling the very edged of its claws graze one of his cheeks as it passed by.

What he wouldn't have given right then to have Agahnim's ability to throw fire from his hands, or that old magic candle that Miranda was so fond of… but since the creature seemed to only exist in the darkness, and that single torch was the only source of light in the room… he needed to get a hold of it. The creature, however, seemed to realize what he was doing, and circled around through the air before landing right between him and it. Taking a look back at the flickering torch, and scowling as its head turned to face Link, the creature opened its mouth again.

Flames now filled his vision, and as the Lord Sheriff tried desperately to back away from the burning cone, his shield provided only the tiniest amount of protection. He hadn't been _completely_ engulfed, but there was enough exposure to sting the skin on his hands and face, while also forcing him to throw away his now burning shirt and hat. The creature backed away from the small amount of light given off by his clothes, and this might have been the only chance for him to get the torch, so Link kicked the burning hat toward the creature, causing it to roar and jump backwards while he took the room's only permanent light source.

Starting with the other torches on the pillar, each revealed in the flickering light when he got close enough, more and more of the room's golden features and elaborate décor was revealed with each torch that was lit, and the creature was infuriated by this. Diving at Link while slashing with its claws, the creature simply vanished any time part of it entered the light being given off by the torches, but would reappear as soon as it passed through into the darkness again. Yes, this made it far easier for the Lord Sheriff to move around the room and light more torches, but the creature still had its fire.

Now angrily blasting out its cone of flame again and again in an attempt to stop the light from expanding, Link dropped the torch when one of the creature's claws struck him across the shoulder during an instant of darkness, causing him to stumble away from the light, where he had to catch himself on the bars that blocked a door. Letting out that awful roar again, and seeing that the Lord Sheriff had nowhere to run, the creature let out one more blast of fire that hit Link head on… and then made him fall backwards when the orange light made the door go back to normal.

The darkness quickly reasserted itself, causing the bars to reappear over the door, leaving the creature trapped inside of the chamber, even when it threw itself at the bars in an attempt to break them down. Scooting backwards like a little crab just in case the creature tried to use its fire again, and soon he was well out of range. The creature continued to roar and attack the bars, not seeming to realize that the fire it produced would allow it to escape as well, but Link didn't plan on waiting for it to figure that out.

Getting to his feet, and looking around the darkened, bluish-purple palace in order to decide which way he should go, the Lord Sheriff was startled when all of the torches in the area suddenly ignited, taking away the darkness and the creature, returning the Great Palace to the golden beauty that it had possessed before. And at the center of the corridor was the old man, coughing and leaning heavily on his walking stick while clapping his hands.

"You… I should _kill_ you for that." Link said angrily, walking toward the old man with sword pointed. "Now no more tricks… take me to the Triforce, or I'll do to you what I did to your monster."

"What? Run around like a headless chicken, and escape through luck?" The old man replied. "That was the clumsiest display of accidental heroism that I've ever seen, but you _did_ survive, and in the real world… accidental victories _count_. Follow me."

This time the Lord Sheriff was careful to stay a good distance behind the old man as he followed him down yet another golden corridor, and now he paid attention to every detail of the palace, not about to get lost again while distracted. However, this time they only went down one more level, into an even larger chamber where an altar, identical to the one where Princess Zelda slept, dominated the room. The only difference was that this one was unoccupied.

"What is this?" Link asked, growing impatient with him. "Where is the Triforce of Courage?"

"Here… its _right_ here." The old man replied, laughing a little. "The Triforce is right in front of you, but as I said, you'll _never_ find it without my help, not in a million years. So beg me, boy… plead my forgiveness for being such a simpleton, and scream to the world that you need my help, and I will show it to you. But be warned… you are not the only one who values the Triforce."

Link wanted to slice the old man with his blade for these insults, but if he really _could_ show him the third Triforce, then this proposed humiliation was the last barrier between Zelda being freed from the curse, and the start of his life with Sing… so he begged. Screaming for anyone around to hear, the Lord Sheriff declared that he was a simpleton, and shamelessly begged the old man for help, no matter how much it shamed him.

"That's enough, boy." The old man said, motioning for him to stand. "I'm proud of you; a lesser man would have rather died than say those words… maybe you really _are_ worthy to claim the Triforce. Prepare yourself."

Suddenly all of the torches went out in the chamber, the doors once again barred to prevent escape, and the old man vanishing as he had done before… but something was different. Beyond the purplish light, there was a glow… a dark blue glow that was coming from the top of the huge altar… where a shimmering upside down pyramid hovered just above the pedestal. Was that it? Was that the Triforce of Courage?

" _Welcome to the Great Palace, Link_." The blue pyramid said in a youthful but calm voice. " _I have been waiting here… waiting for you, I suppose… for a long time. Just as Ganondorf was destined to find the Triforce of Power, and Zelda protect the Triforce of Wisdom, perhaps you are destined to claim me_?"

"You sound unsure, Triforce." The Lord Sheriff replied. "I have passed all of the tests given to me by both Sing, and by that old bast… I mean, her father. I took the Triforce of Power from Ganondorf, and repaired the Triforce of Wisdom for Zelda… and now I want to use your power to put everything right."

"I think _I_ might have something to say about that." A new voice said from off to the side of the chamber. "And what I have to say is… no."

Looking over toward where the voice had come from, all Link could see was a shadowy figure of a man leaning against one of the pillars. His features were hard to make out, almost looking to be even darker than the room itself, and he carried a sword and shield just like Link did. In fact, they dressed and even _sounded_ alike, as well. Without saying anything else at the moment, the shadowy figure walked over to him, chuckling a bit while drawing his sword, prompting the Lord Sheriff to do the same.

" _You have faced many challenges, Link, this is true_." The Triforce explained. " _But only those brave enough to conquer 'themselves' can truly possess me… so behold your 'Shadow', a reflection of your darkest thoughts and actions… a memory, like the Thunderbird you faced earlier… but powered by 'my' power instead of the old guardian_."

"A memory… so he isn't real?" Link asked, struggling to understand. "I don't understand."

"Understand that I'm real enough to take over your mind if you _die_ in this place." The Shadow replied. "Then I'll show Sing how it feels to lay with a _real_ man, and… and then I'll use the Triforce to being back Ganondorf, while that little gold-haired brat sleeps forever."


	29. Chapter 29 Link's Shadow

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Twenty Nine: Link's Shadow**

If aggressiveness was the word used by the Triforce of Courage to describe this Shadow thing, then it was accurate, since the black figure immediately attacked with a powerful overhand swing of his sword. Link avoided it, but didn't get a chance to make an attack of his own, since the Shadow just kept coming, swinging the blade so rapidly that Link could just barely raise his shield in time to stop some of them.

"Why do you want the Princess to wake up so badly?" The Shadow asked when they locked blades. "She rejected you… _humiliated_ you… you're not good enough for her, remember? You're nothing but a glorified _servant-boy_ , who she wouldn't give the honor of polishing her shoes."

"I am the Lord Sheriff of Hyrule." Link replied, shoving the figure back. "I was Knighted by King Harkinian, himself, and charged with bringing justice and order to every inch of the Kingdom… Façade even gave me my own _holiday_."

Now Link went on the offensive, making sparks fly when his silver sword slid across the black figure's shield, and even managing land a hit when he brought up his foot and kicked the Shadow in the chest. It wasn't enough to knock him down, but the Lord Sheriff kept pressing the attack, but his momentary advantage didn't last very long. The Shadow ducked to avoid a slash that struck a pillar instead, then jumping up while swinging his dark shield right into Link's face, and this time there was plenty of force to knock one of them down.

"You are a delusional _slave_ , Link." The black figure said, Link scooting backwards across the floor to keep the dark sword from touching his neck. "After _you_ beat Ganondorf, Façade married the latest Zelda and became King… Agahnim, your supposed _best friend_ , now rules an entire _province_ , married to Miranda, cousin to the Queen. Tell me, _slave boy_ , how is it that a wizzrobe… a God damn _wizzrobe_ is good enough for the Royal Family, but _you_ aren't?"

"You can't _force_ a woman to love you, Shadow." Link replied, smacking away the sword with his blade, and getting up. "It hurt when Zelda rejected me, it _really_ did, but I'm in love with _Sing_ … I think I was from the first moment I saw her. I know you don't understand this, but Façade and Queen Zelda love each other… Agahnim and Miranda love each other… I don't resent my friends for their happiness, like _you_ do."

Now becoming visibly angry, both from the situation as well as for what the black figure was saying to him, the Lord Sheriff went on the attack, letting out an angry roar of his own as he rushed forward, jumping up into the air and spinning around, swinging the silver blade with all of his might… and slicing the Shadow's dark shield in half, like he had once done to Darknut five years ago. The Shadow backed off, discarding the broken shield and putting both hands on his sword, but now keeping his distance.

"Your mind is filled with greed and ambition." Link said, keeping his guard up. "I know because I feel it… you think I should have become King after beating Ganondorf… you think that I should have walked out of Spectacle Rock with the Triforce _and_ Zelda, but I don't want that… not really. As the Lord Sheriff, I have the freedom to go where I want, I have enough wealth for everything I need, the people love me… and I'm going to spend the rest of my life with the most beautiful magician who ever lived."

"No… no, Link, you're not." The Shadow replied, becoming calmer. "I'm _you_ , Link, the only abilities I have, have been copied from what _you_ already possess. You could defeat them, _all_ of your friends, and rule this land while having _both_ Zeldas, Miranda, _and_ Sing as your concubines. But no… you're _weakened_ by love and honor… let me show you you're _true_ potential to conquer."

No longer angry, no longer taunting, the black figure was completely focused, calm, and centered as he walked toward the Lord Sheriff, and whereas his attacks had been wild and forceful before, this time when the Shadow used his dark blade, it was with nothing but precise, refined swordsmanship. Link deflected the first two attacks, but then cried out when the dark blade tore across his forearm, cutting the shield's straps so that it fell to the floor with a _clang_ , and leaving him just barely able to avoid the stab that came for his face.

"Aggression isn't just a blind rage that destroys everything in its path." The black figure said as Link put both hands on his own sword. "Anger can be focused… it can be channeled to inflict harm on only your enemies, while leaving everything else untouched. Now get on your knees and submit to me, Link… or I'm going to start _cutting_ you."

"Never." The Lord Sheriff replied. "I didn't submit to Ganondorf, I didn't submit to that horse monster, and… okay, I submitted to _Barba_ , but he was a _hell_ of a lot scarier than you are."

Not waiting for the Shadow to attack first, Link swung his sword, only to have it knocked out of the way when the black figure kicked the hilt with his boot, and then there was a stinging sensation when the dark blade tore across Link's chest. He tried to regain his balance and attack again, but the Shadow leaned back to avoid the slash aimed at his neck, bringing his foot up into the Lord Sheriff's groin at the same time.

Next tasting blood when the tip of the dark blade cut into his cheek, then dropping his sword after getting a deep cut across both forearms, Link tried to move out of the way, but couldn't stop the black figure from cutting him across the back of both legs after moving around behind him. Groaning with pain and spitting out blood as he fell to his knees, the Lord Sheriff gasped when he was struck in the back of the head with the hilt of the Shadow's sword, putting him on his hands and knees… and then screaming when the dark blade was stabbed right through the back of his shield hand so hard that a small crack formed in the floor below.

"Disarmed, bleeding, and on your knees… _pathetic_." The black figure said, punching Link in the back of the head to make him fall on his stomach. "Now you lie there and watch with tears in your eyes as I claim the Triforce… your woman… your whole life."

Making the Lord Sheriff cry out again when he ripped the dark blade out of his hand, the Shadow chuckled to himself as he walked over to the large alter in the center of the room, and started up the stairs. Bleeding and hurt a lot worse than he wanted to admit, there was no way that Link could take on his Shadow again in a fair fight… but he wasn't about to just hand him the Triforce of Courage. So with the very last of his strength, the Lord Sheriff picked up his silver sword… and tossed it while trying his best to aim.

Falling back on his face after the throw was complete, Link wasn't even sure if he was going to hit his target, until hearing the black figure gasp in shock when the spinning blade sunk deeply into his back. Arching his back reflexively, and somehow managing to keep hold of his sword, the Shadow tried to keep himself from falling, instead doing a kind of awkward backwards hobble down the stairs, to where he tripped over Link, who had gotten back up to his hands and knees.

Crying out in a mixture of groaning and coughing, the black figure fell onto his back, forcing the silver sword to pierce all the way through to the hilt, so that the blade was sticking out through his chest. Now crawling over to him, the Lord Sheriff pulled the dark blade from his hand, raised it up, and plunged the dark sword down into the black figure's face. His Shadow went limp, his whole body vanishing a moment later, and leaving the severely wounded Link with nothing to stop him from claiming the Triforce.

The dark blade had vanished with its master, and his own sword was out of reach, leaving the Lord Sheriff only able to groan painfully as he started to crawl up the stairs of the altar. This crawl, although without obstacles, was by far the most difficult thing he had done since the quest began, feeling like the shimmering blue pyramid was miles away as he dragged himself up step, by painful step… nearly passing out several times before finally making it to the top… and reaching out to touch the Triforce of Courage.

With his fingers only brushing the edge of his prize, suddenly all of the torches in the chamber ignited, returning the whole chamber to the golden and lavish decor that was there when he had first walked in… and now he no longer felt any pain in his body. Looking down at himself, the Lord Sheriff saw that he was no longer bleeding… but this time the old man was nowhere to be found.

"Well done, Link." The blue pyramid said. "You have conquered all of the trials set before you, both by Sing, and by my illusions within this Great Palace. The Thunderbird, your Shadow, and the old man… nothing but shadows of a long forgotten past that I used to test you… and you performed wonderfully."

"Will you help me, then?" Link asked, sitting down to rest. "Will you help me break the curse on Princess Zelda?"

In response, the shimmering blue pyramid simply requested that the Lord Sheriff carry it from this place, and as he carried the Triforce toward the surface, the Great Palace began to change. Beginning with the golden walls, floor, and ceiling fading into a dull gray stone, while the furniture and tapestries slowly rotted away to nothing. By the time Link stepped out the entrance into Death Valley, the Great Palace was nothing but a crumbling ruin that was slowly sinking into the magma.

"Link?" Sing said, after appearing in a strong gust of wind. "Link, you… you… is that the _Triforce_?"

The two of them excitedly embraced, kissing passionately while he tried to hold onto the blue pyramid, and now that the quest was finally over after all this time, the two of them held onto each other tightly while the dark haired magician played the note on her recorder that would send them all the way back to the North Palace.


	30. Chapter 30 The Curse is Broken

**The Adventure of Link**

 **Chapter Thirty: The Curse is Broken**

When Link and Sing appeared in the outside courtyard of the North Palace, everyone, servants, guards, even the horses stopped what they were doing to watch as they carried the reclaimed Triforce into the main hall, where they were met by the equally astonished Façade, Zelda, Miranda, and Agahnim. Everyone there had placed complete faith in the Lord Sheriff that if anyone had been capable of this historic feat, it was him, but still… to see it accomplished with their own eyes was unbelievable.

"Come on, all of you, to the altar!" The Queen said excitedly. "It's time to break the curse!"

With no objections to be heard, the small group headed into the unused north wing where the original Princess Zelda had been sleeping for so long, and even Impa caught up to them eventually, having finally learned how to control her new faerie wings. Once inside the chamber, however, something unexpected happened; the Triforce of Courage left Link's hands as it floated over toward the two others, while Wisdom and Power began to float as well, spinning slowly at the top of the altar above Zelda.

Slowly the three different color pyramids moved closer together, seeming to lock into an even large pyramid shape, and glowing with a soft yellow light while all of them assumed the same golden color that the Great Palace's walls had been. The whole thing now hovered above the sleeping Princess while the small group moved closer, and the Lord Sheriff's tattoo found itself glowing one last time… compelling him to come even closer.

" _We are the Triforce_." All three voices explained in unison. "Once separated for the sake of all creation, we are now again whole… whole and balanced in our wisdom, courage, and power… thanks to you, Link. In our gratitude, we will grant you a wish… anything your heart desires, Link."

For a moment the words of his Shadow filled the Lord Sheriff's mind, and he realized that with the power of any single wish, he could have had anything he wanted. He could have had the Kingdom, eternal life, wealth, women, anything he wanted… but after taking a quick look at his friends, Link realized how foolish and selfish such thoughts were… especially since he already had everything he wanted.

"I wish, more than anything." He began, looking up at the completed Triforce. "For Princess Zelda to awaken; break the curse and free all those affected by it. The trial masters, the trapped heroes under Midoro Swamp, everyone."

" _Your wish will be granted_." The Triforce replied, flashing yellow for a second. " _It is done… those trapped by the curse are free, and Zelda will soon wake… while it is we who must rest. We return now to the Golden Land, where we will await the proper time to return… as we did when Hyrule was in its infancy… goodbye_."

In another flash, the golden Triforce vanished into thin air, but then the attention of everyone in the room was shifted to the sleeping Princess… the Princess who moved. Shaking her head a little at first, and then taking a full breath with her opening mouth, the blonde haired original Princess Zelda opened her eyes. Everyone was speechless as she slowly sat up on the alter, but it was Sing who reacted first; throwing her arms around the Princess and starting to cry her eyes out.

"I'm sorry, Zelda, I'm so sorry!" The dark haired magician sobbed. "You treated me like a sister, and I put you to sleep… please forgive me, Zelda, I'm sorry!"

"Sing?" The blonde Zelda asked, suddenly smiling while hugging her back. "Sing, it's you, it's really you! Don't cry, silly, of course I forgive you… I forgave you so long ago… can we be sisters again?"

The dark haired magician hugged her tightly while nodding her head, and then after a final embrace, Sing stepped away so that the brown haired Zelda could help her revived ancestor stand up for the first time in hundreds of years. The mood across the whole room was complete happiness, with Miranda starting to cry while Agahnim held her, and Façade just kind of standing there stupidly while saying _'there's two of them… there's two Zeldas'_ with a kind of half smile on his face.

"Link?" The Princess said after noticing him. "Thank you for freeing me, and… I know that what I told you wasn't what you wanted to hear, but…

"Princess, I'm just glad to see you awake." The Lord Sheriff interrupted, giving her a quick hug. "But don't waste any more time with me, I'm sure the Queen wants to show everything in Hyrule that's changed since your time."

The revived Princess smiled at him while returning the hug, but then she put something into his hand, before the Queen started helping her down the altar's stairs. Agahnim and Miranda followed, as did the flying faerie Impa, with Façade bringing up the rear with an even bigger smile on his face while repeating _'I've got two Zeldas'_. There was certainly going to be a lot of celebrating going on in Hyrule, once word of the revival spread, but right now the Lord Sheriff had something else on his mind.

"I can't believe the curse is just… _over_." Sing said, looking down at the altar. "It's been a part of my life for so long, and then suddenly I'm not even an enemy of Hyrule anymore, so what should I do? Travel? Become a Court Magician again?"

"Sing, will you marry me?" Link blurted out.

The dark haired magician was caught off guard by this, but seemed to realize what was happening when he got down on one knee, and held out the ring… that Princess Zelda had just given him from her finger. For a moment she just stood there with a dumbfounded look on her face, but then it slowly spread into a smile when she gave him her hand, and the ring was slid into place.

"Yes!" Sing exclaimed, leaping into his arms when he stood up. "Yes, oh, Link, I love you! Yes!"

They kissed for a while, holding each other on top of the now empty altar, until starting to hear the bells on the palace starting to ring. It looked like it was about to be announced that Princess Zelda had awoken, so Link and Sing hurried down the stairs and back into the occupied part of the palace, where they would be able to join in the celebration. The future of the Kingdom of Hyrule looked bright indeed, and the two of them wanted to be a part of it right from the start.

 _Meanwhile… somewhere… nowhere…_

With a sharpened rock being used to scratch another tick mark for how many days had been spent in this… place, Ganondorf the sorcerer hung his head as he realized just how many marks had been made since his forced retreat from Link and his allies. In his haste to save his own life, the sorcerer had used a powerful traveling spell that had been supposed to take him far away… but things had not gone exactly as planned.

This place certainly _looked_ like Hyrule; beautiful with a sunlit landscape made of dozens of different shades of gold colors, where forests and rivers were in the same place as they had been before… but the whole place was empty. Well, all right, there had been a few random encounters with people who were even more lost and confused as to their location than he was, so while these… stragglers ran around all frightened, the sorcerer had chosen to isolate himself… inside of an empty golden palace.

It was easy enough to keep others out of his new home, thanks to his great strength and magic, but no matter how long he had sat there pondering and investigating his situation, no solution came to mind. It was so frustrating to be standing inside the North Palace of Hyrule, but know that it was just some kind of golden mockery, but then there was an incredible golden light that made him jump as something appeared next to the throne. It was a golden triangular formation of three pyramids, and although glowing at first, the light faded as if going to sleep.

"And what do we have here?" Ganondorf asked, coming closer to take a better look.


End file.
